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Panthers coach Ivan Cleary. Photo: Megan Dunn
N I W
our u o y Are owd r C e in th k? Face ee this w
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IVAN CLEARY IN DESPER ATE SEARCH FOR ANSWERS PANTHERS V WARRIORS > P37 It’s do or die as Penrith return home to tackle Stephen Kearney’s Kiwis
YOUR CHANCE TO WIN > P39 Show your love for the Panthers with amazing new 3D figurines
MASKED PANTHER > P42 Getting to the bottom of the problems at Pantherland
Friday, May 17, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time
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Magic Round was awesome for some, troublesome for others
ANDY RAYMOND W
hat a weekend it was in Brisbane. 16 clubs, eight games and 130,000 passionate rugby league fans at Suncorp Stadium. It was a festival of football that brought rugby league fans from across the country, and in some cases around the world, together to celebrate our great game. Fletch and Hindy loved the idea of the weekend so much they even volunteered to live in a see-through bubble tent for the duration of the round! There was only one thing hotter than the temperature in the tent and that was the action on the field. There was a touch of poetic justice when Paul Gallen scored the match-winning try for his Sharks in his last game at Suncorp Stadium, a ground where he’s always been welcomed with a chorus of boos. There was a sigh of relief when the Broncos managed to outlast a gallant, but severely undermanned Manly side and there was tries a plenty for the Storm, Roosters and Rabbitohs as they again proved why they’re the best three teams in the competition. BUT… if there was one side who wished
There was plenty of magic at Suncorp Stadium. Photo: Megan Dunn that they could have ‘disappeared’ during Magic Round, it would have had to have been the Panthers. Penrith went into last Friday night’s game with their backs against the wall and with everything to play for.
Their fans packed the stands at Suncorp Stadium and waited with excited anticipation for their side to come out breathing fire. There was a sense of hope and almost expectation that the Panthers’ bumbling
attack would click into gear and they’d deliver a much-needed win. 20 minutes later, hope had turned to helplessness and excited anticipation to anguish as the Tigers raced out to a 26-nil lead. Ivan Cleary has responded to his side’s hapless performance, swinging the axe and chopping representative stars Josh Mansour and Reagan Campbell- Gillard from his first grade side for this weekend’s clash against the Warriors. Couple that with the rumours that James Maloney has been given permission to look elsewhere and things are beginning to look a little dire at the foot of the Mountains. The task for the Panthers this weekend isn’t an easy one with the unpredictable Warriors rolling into town off the back of a confidence boosting win against the Dragons. If there’s one thing that will give Cleary and Panthers fans hope this weekend it’s that the Warriors are a team who give their opponents plenty of chances, but the question remains, will the Panthers be good enough to take them?
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THE FINAL WORD
FRIDAY, MAY 17 • 6.00PM | PANTHERS STADIUM | REFEREES: HENRY PERENARA & JON STONE
PANTHERS 1
Dylan Edwards
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Brian To’o Dean Whare Waqa Blake Dallin Watene-Zelezniak James Maloney Nathan Cleary James Tamou (c) Sione Katoa Tim Grant Viliame Kikau James Fisher-Harris Liam Martin Jarome Luai Tyrell Fuimaono Moses Leota Kaide Ellis Reagan Campbell-Gillard
the western weekender • extra time » Friday, May 17, 2019
MATCH PREVIEW
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WARRIORS
FOX LEAGUE
Nathan Cleary in action against the Wests Tigers last week. Photo: Megan Dunn
TROY
DODDS There are many words that could be used to describe Penrith’s performance against the Wests Tigers last Friday. Most of them are unprintable. It was a rock- bottom effort from a side that had everything to play for. That opening 20 minutes was not befitting of the pride that should come with wearing the Penrith jersey and there is no question the players need to do some soul searching to find why they lacked the desire and enthusiasm that should come with representing the local community. There are a number of members of the playing group who should be ashamed with the efforts they’re producing on the field this season. It needs to change, and it needs to change quickly.
The man tasked with leading a resurgence is coach Ivan Cleary. This week, he started the process by making a number of changes to his team to take on the Warriors on Friday night. Dylan Edwards is back at fullback and certainly deserves his shot at redemption after a poor start to the season where he simply couldn’t regain his confidence. The axing of Josh Mansour and Reagan Campbell- Gillard, once thought unthinkable, shows just how seriously Cleary is taking the situation at present. Both have been desperately out of form. The return of Waqa Blake from disciplinary action will be important against the Warriors. Replacing the usually reliable Blake with Tyrell Fuimaono last Friday proved disastrous and was a further disruption to a Penrith backline that has been unable to settle for most of the season.
TRIPLE M ABC 702 But a backline can only fire when the forwards are doing their job and that’s just not happening for Penrith at the moment. Campbell- Gillard, who was being talked up as one of the most damaging forwards in the game last year, ran for just 70 metres last Friday night while not one player in the pack clocked up more than 100 metres. Meantime, five Wests Tigers forwards ran more than 100 metres – proving just how dominant they were over a Penrith pack that is being consistently outplayed week after week. The Warriors, despite their erratic form, proved their resilience when coming back to beat the Dragons at Magic Round last weekend. They are particularly dangerous on the edges, which is a concern for Penrith given how easily the Tigers exposed Penrith’s edge defence last weekend.
1
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck (c)
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17
David Fusitu’a Peta Hiku Patrick Herbert Ken Maumalo Kodi Nikorima Blake Green Agnatius Paasi Nathaniel Roache Leeson Ah Mau Isaiah Papalii Tohu Harris Lachlan Burr Jazz Tevaga Bunty Afoa Ligi Sao Karl Lawton 18 Gerard Beale
Stephen Kearney’s side missed a whopping 38 tackles last weekend and broke almost half the tackles compared to what the Dragons offered, but they won the match with a superior completion rate (a very strong 91 per cent) and they’ll again be looking to limit the mistakes against Penrith, knowing that the points will come eventually as long as they are patient. For Penrith, it’s simply a matter of finding some heart. Ivan Cleary needs to find whatever it is that will make this group of players tick and start playing with the desire that should have been there from the first moment of the pre-season. I wanted to tip the Warriors all week, but I have a feeling that after falling to rock bottom last weekend, the Panthers will pick themselves up and scrap their way to a win. I doubt it’ll be pretty, but right now, we’ll take what we can get. Tip: Panthers by 4.
37
Friday, May 17, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time
FEATURE Waqa Blake. Photo: Melinda Jane
LESSON LEARNED WAQA BL AKE PROMISES TO REPAY SUPPORTERS NATHAN
TAYLOR
38
After missing Magic Round due to disciplinary reasons, Panthers centre Waqa Blake admits he feels responsible for Penrith’s 30-4 drubbing at the hands of the Wests Tigers. The 24- year- old Fijian was axed from Ivan Cleary’s side to play the Tigers at Suncorp Stadium last week after he misread the schedule and was late to training. Fronting the media on Wednesday afternoon, Blake owned his blunder head- on and admitted Cleary made the right call in dropping him. “I let my teammates, the staff and especially the fans down – it wasn’t good enough,” he said. “I was at home chilling and read the schedule wrong and wasn’t here. We are
all professionals and you just have to be better. “It wasn’t an overreaction from Ivan, we have standards that we’ve had in place since the start of the year. I was in the wrong and I’m just going to own it.” With Blake missing and fringe first grader Tyrell Fuimaono thrust into the centres the Tigers took advantage, scoring several tries down Penrith’s right edge before Cleary switched Fuimaono with fellow centre Dean Whare. Blake, who watched the debacle on television from his Penrith home, said it was “tough” to endure. “I watched it all the way through, I always support my teammates and I’m always there for them,” he said. “It was tough watching, but I put it back to myself. I disrupted the preparation a lot and I can’t put it on the boys. It just wasn’t our day and it hasn’t been for a couple of weeks.”
“I LET MY TEAMMATES, THE STAFF AND ESPECIALLY THE FANS DOWN. IT WASN’T GOOD ENOUGH”
Blake has been named in Penrith’s starting side for tonight’s clash against the New Zealand Warriors at Panthers Stadium. The teams last met in week one of the
2018 NRL Finals, with Penrith big winners on that occasion. After admitting he didn’t have the answers to Penrith’s poor form at the post- match press conference last Friday, coach Cleary has made several changes to his roster for tonight’s game with Josh Mansour and Reagan Campbell- Gillard the big casualties from the thrashing to Wests. Blake said feels for Cleary and believes it’s on the players – not just the coach – to turn things around. “We all feel for him (Cleary), he works hard and so does the whole coaching staff. I think it’s on us as players to step up and play some good footy,” he said. “It’s been a tough few weeks, but I’m sure the boys [who got dropped] won’t take it too heavily. They’ll go back to wherever they need to and work hard to get back in, I’m sure we’ll see them again soon.”
the western weekender • extra time » Friday, May 17, 2019
FEATURE
WIN: PANTHERS GO 3D NATHAN
TAYLOR
Josh Mansour’s figurine looks lifelike
Realistic as they come: Viliame Kikau
“We make everything to order and all figurines are made to scale, so if people want to order multiple players they’ll notice the height difference between them all, to make it more realistic.” Despite Penrith not doing so well on the field in 2019, it hasn’t affected sales of their Mini League figurines with Nathan Cleary, Josh Mansour and Reagan CampbellGillard up there with the biggest sellers. “Nathan Cleary is our most popular Panthers player while Damien Cook and
Cameron Smith are our top sellers overall,” Naylor said. To see the range and to purchase your own 3D Mini League figurine, visit www. minileague.com. The Weekender has five 3D figurines to give away. For your chance to win one, email competitions@westernweekender. com.au with 3D in the subject line and tell us which player you’d like. Entries close Friday, May 24. Authorised under NSW Permit No LTPM/19/04131.
Nathan Cleary getting 3D scanned
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Whether it’s a signed retro jersey, Scanlens footy card or vintage team poster, rugby league memorabilia has come in all forms over the years. But one new piece of memorabilia that’s getting everyone talking of late is lifelike figurines of your favourite NRL players. Introducing 3D Mini League figurines – the latest craze that’s gripping the world of rugby league collectors. 100 per cent unique and Australianmade, these figurines are among the first 3D printed sports collectibles created. Utilising state-of-the-art photogrammetry technology, the figurine is presented in full colour gypsum and is hand finished to perfect every detail of the player. Popular in the AFL since 2017, manufacturer The Mini League has recently teamed up with the NRL to produce player figurines from all 16 clubs. The Mini League Executive Director, Tim Naylor, explained the process of creating each lifelike figurine. “We take scanning equipment around to every single club and scan each player individually,” he told Extra Time.
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Friday, May 17, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time
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Friday, May 17, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time
PANTHER RUMBLINGS
with the Masked Panther
TOUGH TIMES Penrith coach Ivan Cleary will front the
club’s Board on May 29 in an attempt to explain the team’s awful start to the season. But it’s unlikely to be a major grilling, with the meeting set to focus on discussions about the plan moving forward – including potential tweaks to the squad as the June 30 deadline approaches. The Board is obviously unhappy with the way the Panthers have played this season but remains staunchly behind Cleary.
Nobody can deny that Pantherland is
not a happy place at the moment. Ivan Cleary and his staff are desperately trying to get the bottom of it but I’m told the sex tape scandal in the pre-season is a catalyst for a lot of the issues. Not only did it disrupt the squad and test a number of friendships, but there’s been some uncomfortable issues with wives and girlfriends too. The whole thing has really unsettled the season and made away trips particularly difficult.
Watching the Panthers at the moment
is enough to turn anybody to the drink so it was no surprise that Ivan Cleary, Peter Wallace and Cameron Ciraldo headed to a bar last Friday night in an attempt to start an immediate review of what went wrong against the Wests Tigers. When the trio arrived at a Brisbane watering hole, they found it to be full of journalists. Not surprisingly, Cleary, Wallace and Ciraldo didn’t stay long.
Panthers CEO Brian Fletcher was
instrumental in convincing the NRL to allow suburban grounds to host matches in week one of the Finals. Fletcher was ruthless on the issue after the Panthers were forced to host the Warriors at the soulless ANZ Stadium in the Finals last year. Last week, the NRL announced that suburban grounds were back on the menu for the Finals with Panthers Stadium now an approved venue to host matches. “This is an extremely positive result for our Club, particularly our fans but also for the game,” Fletcher said.
Be prepared for another home game to be lost from Panthers Stadium next year
Ivan Cleary. Photo: Megan Dunn with the club likely to be forced to host a Magic Round match at Suncorp Stadium. Clubs have been informed that Magic Round will definitely be back in 2020, and it’s likely that ‘away’ teams from last weekend will be forced to move home matches as part of the concept next year. It’ll mean there will be just 10 matches at Panthers Stadium, with one game already shifted to Bathurst.
With another injury to his shoulder
and his teammates in Brisbane, Isaah Yeo headed back home to the country last weekend for some fresh air and recharging. Yeo was back in Penrith on Monday and is continuing to get treatment for his
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shoulder with the hope of being back on the field against the Roosters in Round 13.
Serious questions are being raised about Ivan Cleary’s decision to appoint James Tamou as the team’s sole captain. While plenty of eyebrows were raised when it was first announced a few weeks ago, a number of league experts including Blues coach Brad Fittler are publicly airing concerns over the decision. Tamou is an excellent player and leads by his actions on the field, but he’s hardly the talker and motivator that the Panthers need at the moment.
It’s unlikely that Dallin Watene-
Zelezniak will be in a blue and gold jersey any time soon. Reports emerged last weekend suggesting Watene-Zelezniak’s management had been in discussions about a move to Parramatta before June 30. I’m told Penrith officials were filthy when they heard the rumour in the leadup to last Friday’s clash against the Tigers at Suncorp Stadium. The Panthers have no intention of releasing the 23-year-old and there has been no formal approach by the Eels.
Some of Penrith’s most famous names are set to pull the jersey back on for this year’s Legends of League tournament, which now features the Panthers.
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Let’s admire the toughness of NRL players
CLINTON MAYNARD T
oo often rugby league dominates the headlines for the wrong reasons. The off- field behaviour displayed by many NRL players during the last off- season was terrible and costly to the reputation of the game. When we hear about the atrocities committed by so- called ‘role models’, we can easily forget about all that is good about the game and the players. The modern day NRL player is very well remunerated and when they find themselves in trouble, the fact they don’t have full-time jobs outside the game is cited as one of the reasons some stray down the wrong path. However last weekend and the season so far show one of the key reasons they are paid well – they put their bodies on the line without fear and the result is injury, which can destroy their season and leave them with years of pain in retirement. The injury toll from the season so far is almost unprecedented and it’s dominated by many of the game’s biggest names. The struggling Broncos have lost Jack Bird for the rest of the year with a knee injury. It’s the second straight year his
season has been ruined by injury and, given his history of arthritis, one can’t help but ask whether his body is up to the rigours of NRL year after year. Bird demonstrated just how tough players are, by attempting to get up and run with what was a ruptured ACL. Melbourne’s Curtis Scott broke his foot, the Roosters lost Daniel Tupou, Boyd Cordner and we all feared the worst when Latrell Mitchell went off only to come back. The list of long-term stars out injured is endless. Roosters captain Jake Friend, winger Josh Morris; Brisbane’s Andrew McCulloch; Panther Isaah Yeo; Sharks stars Matt Moylan, Aaron Woods, Wade Graham and Shaun Johnson; Canberra’s Joey Leilua; Manly’s Daly Cherry- Evans and Tom Trbojevic. Talk to any former rugby league player in retirement and they’ll tell you about the pain they suffer day in, day out years after they’ve finished playing. The injury toll is a reminder that the stars who entertain us each week deserve their big salaries.
the western weekender • extra time » Friday, May 17, 2019
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Isaah Yeo leaving the field injured earlier this month. Photo: NRL Photos
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Friday, May 17, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time
NRL LADDER AND FIXTURES PD
W
D
L
B
F
A
9
8
0
1
0
253
148
+105 16
2 Rabbitohs
9
8
0
1
0
234
137
+97
16
3 Storm
9
7
0
2
0
227
115
+112
14
4 Raiders
9
6
0
3
0
197
132
+65
12
5 Sea Eagles
9
5
0
4
0
171
156
+15
10
6 W. Tigers
9
5
0
4
0
170
170
0
10
7 Sharks
9
5
0
4
0
174
175
-1
10
8 Eels
9
5
0
4
0
205
207
-2
10
9 Knights
9
4
0
5
0
168
160
+8
8
CLUB
1
Roosters
+/-
PTS
10 Dragons
9
4
0
5
0
166
186
-20
8
11 Broncos
9
3
0
6
0
168
195
-27
6
12 Warriors
9
3
0
6
0
174
208
-34
6
13 Cowboys
9
3
0
6
0
147
211
-64
6
14 Titans
9
2
0
7
0
150
217
-67
4
15 Panthers
9
2
0
7
0
117
210
-93
4
16 Bulldogs
9
2
0
7
0
114
208
-94
4
Round 10
/ / / / / / / /
FACE IN THE CROWD
Thursday, May 16 7.50pm AAMI Park Friday, May 17 6pm Panthers Stadium Friday, May 17 7.55pm Suncorp Stadium Saturday, May 18 3pm Cbus Super Stadium Saturday, May 18 5.30pm 1300 Smiles Stadium Saturday, May 18 7.30pm GIO Stadium
Sunday, May 19 2pm Glen Willow Oval
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From bad boy to club legend When Mark Geyer announced his retirement on a Wednesday morning back in 2000, it brought to an end a remarkable 180- game career that was one of the great roller coaster rides. Geyer was a rugby league loose cannon in his early days at Penrith, so much so that his career was almost derailed numerous times due to both his on-field and off-field behaviour. ‘MG’ won the premiership with Penrith in 1991 but after 92 games at the foot of the Mountains, headed to the Balmain Tigers for the 1993 season. After sitting out the 1994 season, he was handed a lifeline by the Western Reds, playing with the Perth- based club for three seasons from 1995-1997. In 1998, Geyer was back where he belonged – at the Penrith Panthers. Now matured, Geyer had a strong three seasons with Penrith before announcing his retirement in 2000. “Rugby league and Penrith have been great to me,” Geyer said when announcing his retirement at a press conference. “I am delighted to have been given the opportunity of returning to Penrith. To the fans who have showed faith in my career and the general public, who’s perception of me seems to have changed over time, I thank them for their support.”
the western weekender • extra time » Friday, May 17, 2019
Panther Flashback
SCOREBOARD NRL
TIGERS 30 PANTHERS 4
NSW CUP
PANTHERS BYE
JERSEY FLEGG PANTHERS 22 EELS 14
How the Weekender covered Mark Geyer’s retirement in 2000 Geyer was emotional at his retirement press conference, but said he was comfortable with his decision. “I’ve been training and playing at this level for 14 years,” he said.
“I’ve also got a wife, three kids and another one on the way. I want to spend more time with my family.” Geyer went on to build a successful media career, working with Triple M.
BEHIND THE PANTHERS
Cassidy Gabrio
HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED FOR PANTHERS? Eight months. WHAT’S THE BEST THING ABOUT WORKING FOR PANTHERS? Working closely with the commercial and football staff and seeing all the hard work in action on game days. WHO IS YOUR FUNNIEST COLLEAGUE AT PANTHERS? Jeremy Tuite and his team of space cadets.
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Membership Executive
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Friday, May 17, 2019 « the western weekender