- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
And then there were two.
A decade ago, the Penrith Panthers and Parramatta Eels were the laughing stock of the NRL, finishing in the bottom two at the end of the 2012 season as both sides sought to rebuild their playing lists.
This Sunday, western Sydney for that matter, will come to a standstill on Sunday night when two of the league’s great rivals square off for the game’s ultimate prize at Accor Stadium.
It is the dream match-up for the NRL Grand Final’s return to the Harbour City, after last year’s decider was played at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane due to COVID-19 restrictions.
For the Eels it shapes as, potentially, the biggest day in the club’s history with its NRLW side contesting its first Grand Final when they come up against the Newcastle Knights in a match-up that continues to give the blue and golds plenty of nightmares.
Why, you ask? Because it was in 2001 when the Knights’ men’s team, led by none other than Andrew Johns, destroyed the Eels’ premiership dreams with a devastating first half, in which it led 24-0 at half-time, before holding off a furious comeback to win 30-24.
In the men’s match, the Eels will be aiming to put an end to the NRL’s longest premiership drought, 35 completed seasons having passed since they last lifted the trophy.
While Brad Arthur’s side couldn’t string together more than three wins in a row this season, they were still able to finish in the top four for the third time in six seasons, but also faced some questions about their title credentials after crashing out in straight sets in 2017 and 2020.
These came to a head after they lost to the Panthers 27-8 in the first qualifying final at Bluebet Stadium, but they would hit back hard, first thrashing the Canberra Raiders 40-4 in the semi-final before coming from behind to beat the Cowboys 24-20 in the preliminary final in Townsville.
It is the first time they have qualified for a Grand Final since 2009, when they lost to a Melbourne Storm side that nobody knew had been illegally assembled at the time.
To this day, many Eels fans still feel a sense of anger over that result, not least after the Storm were stripped of that title, along with its 2007 premiership, due to massive salary cap breaches that were uncovered by the NRL in April 2010.
(Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
Therefore, there is the lure of redemption for the blue-and-golds, whose previous best shot at a title ended in the aforementioned horror loss against the Knights where they simply froze on the big stage.
There are no remaining survivors from the Eels’ 2009 Grand Final side, meaning for most of the present-day squad this will be their first time playing in the final match of the season.
They will have their work cut out against a seasoned Penrith side which will be playing in its third consecutive Grand Final, becoming just the third different club after the Roosters (2002-04) and Storm (2006-09, and 2016-18) to do so in the NRL era.
Ivan Cleary’s side finished as minor premiers for the second time in three years following a strong follow-up season to their premiership defence in which it won 20 games and lost four – two of them to their arch-rivals the Eels.
After a significantly weakened side lost to the Cowboys by 38-8 in the final round of the regular season, Cleary swiftly injected his troops back into the side for their September campaign, during which they beat the Eels 27-8 and the Rabbitohs 32-12 to take their place in the decider.
They had fallen behind 12-0 early as fans feared the prospect that a western Sydney Derby Grand Final would not eventuate, but the premiers would run riot after half-time, not conceding a point after they had gone into the sheds locked up at 12-all.
Earlier, Nathan Cleary returned from his five-game suspension incurred for a dangerous throw on Dylan Brown in round 20 to bomb the Eels out of the qualifying final, which earned them the week off.
The Grand Final will be coach Cleary’s 200th game in charge of the club, a milestone not many thought was possible after he was controversially sacked by then-football GM Phil Gould in October 2015.
He had been brought to the club to rebuild its playing list at the end of the 2011 season, and after a second-last place finish in 2012 (only above the Eels) got them to within a game of the Grand Final two years later before dropping back out of the finals in 2015.
Cleary snr was rehired in 2019, and just 12 months later took the side to the top of the ladder where they would be mainstays for the following three seasons (though they finished second in 2021, though triumphed when it mattered most).
The 51-year-old now has the chance to etch his name into Panthers history by becoming the club’s first ever two-time premiership winning coach, having ended his hoodoo twelve months ago when they defeated the Rabbitohs 14-12 at Suncorp Stadium.
It is his fourth Grand Final as coach – he also led the New Zealand Warriors to the 2011 decider, which they lost to Des Hasler’s Sea Eagles.
While the Panthers will start hot favourites to claim back-to-back premierships, a loss could be a case of history repeating in the sense that the Roosters, in 2003, were denied back-to-back titles by a Panthers side that had finished last just two years earlier.
Similarly, the Eels, which claimed the wooden spoon in 2018, would be aiming to stop their western Sydney rivals from going back-to-back.
Coach Brad Arthur has the chance to achieve what eluded Brian Smith (2001) and Daniel Anderson (2009) and become the man that puts an end to the club’s premiership drought.
Arthur has in recent years faced criticism for his side’s poor September performances, but after getting them past the second week, and ultimately into the decider, he can have the last laugh over his doubters which came knocking after the club finished last in 2018.
(Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
NRL GRAND FINAL – Penrith Panthers vs Parramatta Eels
Sunday, October 2, 7:30pm AEDST at Accor Stadium, Sydney
This season: Eels won 22-20 at Bluebet Stadium in round nine, Eels won 34-10 at Commbank Stadium in round 20, Panthers won 27-8 at Bluebet Stadium in the first qualifying final.
Penrith Panthers’ season snapshot
Finished 1st (20 wins, 4 losses, +306 points differential, 42 premiership points)
Qualifying final: defeated Parramatta Eels 27-8 at Bluebet Stadium
Preliminary final: defeated South Sydney Rabbitohs 32-12 at Accor Stadium
Parramatta Eels’ season snapshot
Finished 4th (16 wins, 8 losses, +119 points differential, 34 premiership points)
Qualifying final: lost to Penrith Panthers 8-27 at Bluebet Stadium
Semi-final: defeated Canberra Raiders 40-4 at Commbank Stadium
Preliminary final: defeated North Queensland Cowboys 24-20 at Queensland Country Bank Stadium
The stats that matter
* This is the Penrith Panthers’ sixth Grand Final, and third in succession. From five previous Grand Finals, they are 3-2.
* The Panthers are the first side to reach three consecutive Grand Finals since the Melbourne Storm did so between 2016-18. They are also just the third side in the NRL era to do so (after the Roosters in 2002-04, and the Storm between 2006-09 and 16-18).
* This is the Parramatta Eels’ 10th Grand Final, and first since 2009. From nine previous Grand Finals, they are 4-5.
* This is the first time the two sides meet in a Grand Final. They have met four times previously in finals; they are tied 2-all, with the Panthers winning the most recent of them by 27-8 in the first qualifying final at Bluebet Stadium this year.
* The Panthers have never won the premiership in an even year; from the two Grand Finals they qualified for in such years (1990 and 2020), they were beaten by the Canberra Raiders and Melbourne Storm respectively.
* The Panthers and Eels are the first pair of sides to meet the maximum possible five times in a calendar year (pre-season, two regular season matches, a first-week finals match and the Grand Final) since the Roosters and Sea Eagles in 2013.
* This is the sixth time in the NRL era that two sides face off twice within one finals series. The other pairings are Storm/Dragons in 1999, Tigers/Cowboys in 2005, Roosters/Sea Eagles in 2013, Broncos/Cowboys in 2015 and Panthers/Rabbitohs last year.
* This is the second consecutive year in which the two Grand Finalists face off after also facing each other in the qualifying final.
Predictions
Match: Penrith Panthers by 12 points
First tryscorer: Dylan Edwards (Panthers), Maika Sivo (Eels)
Clive Churchill Medal: Isaah Yeo (if the Panthers win), Dylan Brown (if the Eels win)
Earlier, the Eels’ women’s side can complete the Bradbury of all Bradburies when they face the Newcastle Knights in the NRLW Grand Final, in the battle of the two sides that didn’t reach the previous season’s finals series.
The blue-and-golds sat last on the ladder and winless after round four, but were able to score an upset win over the Broncos in round five to force their way into fourth spot before upsetting the high-flying Sydney Roosters in the preliminary final at Suncorp Stadium.
This is similar to what happened the previous season when the Chooks just scraped their way into the finals; after finishing fourth, they came from 16-0 down to upset three-time premiers the Broncos 22-16 in the preliminary final before beating the Dragons 16-4 in the decider.
Dean Widders’ side will have a tough task coming up against a Knights side which, after it failed to win a single game the previous season, loaded up on experience and quickly became the most improved side in the competition with four wins from five regular season matches.
The Novocastrians’ only defeat came in round four when they lost to the Roosters by 18-16, after Isabelle Kelly scored an intercept try for the Chooks with five minutes remaining to break the red and blues’ hearts.
With a squad featuring Tamika Upton and Millie Boyle, they will enter the decider as heavy favourites, following two consecutive thrashings of the Dragons, scoring 30 points in both victories.
They have the chance to join the likes of Andrew Johns, Paul Harragon, Danny Buderus, Steve Simpson, Matt Gidley and Timana Tahu, among others, as the club’s premiership players.
Newcastle Knights NRLW team celebrate (Photo by Albert Perez/Getty Images)
NRLW GRAND FINAL – Newcastle Knights vs Parramatta Eels
Sunday, October 2, 3:55pm AEDST at Accor Stadium, Sydney
This season: Knights won 18-16 at McDonald Jones Stadium in round three.
Newcastle Knights’ season snapshot
Finished 2nd (4 wins, 1 loss, 44+ points differential, 8 premiership points)
Preliminary final: defeated St George Illawarra Dragons 30-6 at Suncorp Stadium
Parramatta Eels’ season snapshot
Finished 4th (1 win, 4 losses, -20 points differential, 2 premiership points)
Preliminary final: defeated Sydney Roosters 24-10 at Suncorp Stadium
The stats that matter
* For both clubs, this is their first ever NRLW Grand Final. This means we are guaranteed to have our third premiership-winning club in the competition’s history.
* A win for the Knights would see them join the Broncos and Roosters as the only clubs to have won both an NRL and NRLW premiership in the NRL era (1998-present).
* A win for the Eels would be their first significant piece of silverware since 1986, though the men’s team would be still to play its decider against the Penrith Panthers later that evening.
Predictions
Match: Newcastle Knights by six points.
First tryscorer: Tamika Upton (Knights), Rikeya Horne (Eels)
Karyn Murphy Medal: Millie Boyle (if the Knights win), Kennedy Cherrington (if the Eels win)
Reckon you can pick the winning team? Build your own dream team with Draftstars daily fantasy and compete on any match. For great odds on the NRL head on over to PlayUp. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.