Extra Time April 19 2024 (NRL Round 7 - Panthers v Tigers)

BACK IN BATHURST

SUNIA TURUVA POSTER

the finalword

Penrith and the Wests Tigers return to Carrington Park in Bathurst a year on from one of the biggest upsets of the 2023 NRL season, and this time the weather promises to be far different from the torrential rain that greeted the sides last year.

Ironically, as much as the Tigers have struggled in recent seasons and Penrith have made four straight Grand Finals, they’ve actually performed pretty well against the Panthers; usually due to extenuating circumstances like Origin drain or weather, but still, the results are on the board.

Where it helps Benji Marshall’s team is that the Tigers wouldn’t fear the Panthers all that much this Saturday. They don’t necessarily see them as the unbeatable team that some clubs probably do when they prepare to take on Ivan Cleary’s juggernaut.

One thing is for sure: both teams will have to

improve from their last performance to grab the two points in Bathurst.

Marshall declared the Tigers’ performance against the Dragons last Sunday as the worst of the season and while the scoreboard suggests a narrow 12-point loss, anyone who saw the game would know the Tigers were very poor.

Penrith will be rested from the week off but the performance against Manly a fortnight ago certainly sent warning sirens blaring. Let’s hope it was simply a speedbump in the road and not a sign of things to come.

Nathan Cleary’s hamstring injury means he’ll sit out this one, a significant loss given most expected him to return after two games out. It turns out the injury was harder to manage and get right than initially thought.

In some good team selection news, Scott Sorensen returns while Jarome Luai has brushed away any injury concerns.

Against Manly the Panthers showed signs of something that has not crept into their game at any stage of their three-year Premiership run: complacency.

At times it appeared they just expected things to happen; and when they didn’t, they just didn’t have the energy or effort levels required to respond in any serious manner (except for Dylan Edwards, who is having one hell of a season).

On the surface, it’s an easy fix. We know the talent and ability is there, so it’ll come down to motivation.

The Tigers meantime have bigger problems, as they try to settle on a line-up that can get the job done consistently.

They do welcome back Lachlan Galvin on Saturday, a move that couldn’t come quick enough.

As much as this game isn’t desperation stakes

given it falls in Round 7, the loser will without question be in some trouble. The Tigers are desperate to shrug off the struggles of the past and make the most of the Benji Marshall era, but last week’s performance would suggest they’ve learned little. If they end up getting thrashed by Penrith on Saturday, plenty will wonder if they’ve made much progress at all.

As for Penrith, while Cleary is out, there won’t be the excuses that have existed in previous years to fall to the Tigers. This is the perfect opportunity for the Panthers to make a statement that they are the deserved Premiership favourites.

Penrith has had a mixed relationship with the Bathurst game over the years. Here’s a chance to make it what it should be: a second home where the Panthers are dominant.

I think Penrith will be too strong.

Tip: Panthers by 14.

! May’s Insta woes, commentator on attack: Fox League and SEN broadcaster Andrew Voss hasn’t missed in his take on the controversial Taylan May Instagram video from inside a speeding car. Last week, May posted a video on his Instagram account showing himself in the passenger seat of a vehicle that reaches speeds of up to 96 kilometres an hour in a suburban street. May was not driving, but his posting of the video has caused major concern for some and created unwanted headlines for Penrith. “I watched it and I thought, ‘this is just ridiculous’,” Voss said on SEN this week. “This is so irresponsible. You’re putting it up as a boast, that the speed is going that fast.” Voss said the post lacked common sense. “Leave the role model part out but you’re looked at as a hero. Let me ask you Taylan, would you like your son or daughter down the track to see that? Would you like your son or daughter in that car? Come on, mate. Grow up.” Voss said Penrith needed to “haul May over the coals”. May deleted his Instagram account in the wake of the drama, but has now restored it.

! Cleary’s May denial: Meanwhile, Penrith coach Ivan Cleary tried to claim he wasn’t aware of the May incident when asked about it on Tuesday. We find that hard to believe.

! Turuva visits rival clubs: Sunia Turuva spent part of his time off last week visiting rival clubs as he weighs up his future. His manager drove the 21-year-old to at least two clubs – who I understand to be Newcastle and St George-Illawarra. The Fijian flyer would prefer to remain at the Panthers, but in a familiar tale, the money on offer elsewhere may be too good to refuse.

! Corporate committee locked in: A group of corporate partners (pictured below) will help guide how sponsorship runs while the Panthers vacate BlueBet Stadium for the 2025 season, and possibly part of 2026. The club is facing a variety of challenges with sponsors, many of whom are local businesses and who

benefit from the local aspects of their arrangements. Enzo Montana (Montana Signs), Melinda Leyshon (You Me Brand Now), Steve Kennedy (Kennect Electrical), Corey Battese (Granville Plastamasta), Tony Licastro (Ultra Air), Michael Jones (MKJ Projects), Roger Amir (Mitronics Corporation), Tony Campbell (Westfund Health Insurance) and Sally-ann Eather (Eather Group) form the committee.

! Member committee also secured: Meantime, a seven-person members advisory committee has also been locked in to help guide how the club handles membership and season tickets next year. John Glover, Ben Cummins, Peita Rzepecki, Angela Dobson, Anita Adams, Steven Guyatt and Aaron Bost will be the eyes and ears of members during the stadium transition.

! Why the secrecy? In recent times, the Panthers have become extremely guarded when it comes to injuries. They’ve stopped providing regular injury updates on their website, and won’t provide official comment to confirm players being in or out. What makes

it stranger is that someone tends to leak the news anyway – so the secret isn’t kept for long, while other journalists who went through proper channels are left out in the cold. I ponder what it actually achieves to keep injuries and rehab progress under wraps?

! Panthers won’t release ANZAC jersey: There will be no ANZAC Day jersey from the Panthers this year. While Penrith will add a poppy to their match day jersey against the Cowboys next Saturday night, there will be no official jersey release this year.

! Origin launch: The 2024 Origin series was officially launched in Melbourne earlier this week by coaches Michael Maguire and Billy Slater. Origin is less than 50 days away.

Taylan May. Photo: NRL Photos.

Andrew Voss.

SHOCK AS FISH CONFIRMS DEPARTURE

James Fisher-Harris has dramatically quit the Penrith Panthers.

The 28-year-old three-time Premiership winner will depart the club at the end of the season after being granted a release on compassionate grounds.

He will join the New Zealand Warriors from 2025, it was announced on Wednesday.

The Weekender understands recent personal circumstances prompted Fisher-Harris to approach Penrith officials and ask for the shock release.

He will play out the remainder of 2024 with the Panthers.

“Fish has been exceptional for the Panthers, both on and off the field,” Panthers coach Ivan Cleary said.

“The leadership and cultural impact he has displayed since coming into first grade has been outstanding. He’s evolved into one of the game’s elite players, and coaching him has been a pleasure.

“While we would have loved him to stay at the Panthers, we wish him, his partner Natalie, and children Tahira and Deon all the best for their next chapter.”

Since making his NRL debut in 2016, Fisher-Harris has played 183 NRL games for the Panthers, four matches for the Maori All Stars and 15 Test matches for New Zealand.

He was named the Kiwis captain last year and won the 2023 Golden Boot Award.

“James has been a tremendous asset to the Panthers, and as a premiership player, has been a true reflection of a team that strives to be a source of community pride,” Panthers Rugby League CEO Matt Cameron said.

“Joining the club as an 18 year old, he has become a world-class player, captain of his nation, and a leader of men. His impact on our club culture has been truly exceptional.”

The Warriors have announced Fisher-Harris has signed with the club for four seasons.

“We’re absolutely delighted to be able to sign James,” said Warriors CEO Cameron George.

“It’s a huge signing for us, undoubtedly one of the biggest in our club’s history.”

Meanwhile, Fisher-Harris is focused on the rest of the year, starting with this weekend’s

“We’ve been training pretty good,” FisherExtra Time

He said he can’t wait to get to Bathurst and soak up the week.

“I’m a country boy from New Zealand, so I know what it’s like for a team to go [out] there and show some love.

“All those kids don’t get the opportunity all the time, so it’s about giving back.”

Penrith were due to head to Bathurst on Thursday.

by

James Fisher-Harris on Monday afternoon. Photo: Melinda Jane.

Penrith Panthers fullback Dylan Edwards spent the first few years of his career hiding in the shadows of other Panthers stars.

But undeniably Edwards has become one of the pillars of the three-time premiership team with an incredible try saving effort on Bailey Simonsson in the 2022 Grand Final, which saw him become the winner of the Clive Churchill medal, and his consistent reliability in the backline.

With halfback and co-captain Nathan Cleary sidelined for an unknown period of time with a pesky hamstring injury, Edwards has been one of the players to stand up and lead the team.

“Obviously, we’d love to have Nathan out there on the field playing alongside us,” Edwards said.

“But I think it provides everyone with the chance to narrow down on their roles and sharpen their tools, so to say.

“I think it provides everyone with a chance to take their game to another level.”

The humble as ever Edwards puts all his faith in co-captains Cleary and Isaah Yeo as they lead the team out each week.

“I’m happy running out behind Nathan and Yeoy every week,” Edwards said.

“They’re fantastic and I love them.”

With State of Origin fast approaching, Edwards confirmed he has aspirations to one day pull on the prestigious sky blue jersey.

“I think it is every child’s dream that sort of grows up in Australia,” Edwards said.

“[To be] able to represent their state, it’s something everyone sort of strives for.

“You watch them mid-year and you sort of have since you were a kid, it is almost the pinnacle of rugby league.”

State of Origin aspirations aside, Edwards has complete faith in his side to bounce back this weekend against the Tigers in Bathurst, after a loss to Manly and last week’s bye.

“We’re excited,” Edwards said of the clash.

“We have a few areas to address in our footy, it’s important for us to go back and do what we do well.

“It’ll be a good opportunity against the Tigers considering they are playing a good brand of footy as well.”

Edwards also confirmed to Extra Time that his new buzz cut is here to stay, citing some friendly fire from his fellow players caused the change.

“I’m blessed with a lot of things, but a good head of hair is not one of them,” Edwards revealed.

“The boys have been giving me stick for a while, so I thought we’d get rid off it.”

Edwards will play fullback and continue with the kicking duties for this Saturday afternoon’s game.

Dylan Edwards is ready to take on the

Tigers. Photo: Melinda Jane.

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Panthers coach Ivan Cleary has confirmed that Nathan Cleary will more than likely make his comeback from a hamstring injury next weekend in Townsville during ANZAC Round.

In his pre-game press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Cleary said his superstar son will miss his third game of the season this weekend due to an ongoing hamstring injury.

“He’s going well, he just had a little more awareness at the start than we sort of

thought based on scans. We just moved [his return] out a bit, change of plan,” he said.

“We are still pretty hopeful of next week. He could probably play this week but until he does more training...”

Cleary said the two-time Clive Churchill Medal winner has resumed training.

“He’s just running – he’s been doing heaps of that. He now just has to gravitate back into team stuff, which he has been doing, but until he can do the whole bit for probably a week then we’re not going to play him.”

Cleary isn’t overly concerned by the run of injuries his team has experienced this year.

“Every team goes through players and they come and they go. Over a long season you’ve got to play with the [whole] squad,” he said.

Missed last week’s results? Here’s a rundown of what happened in key Penrith Panthers games...

As Sunia Turuva prepares to meet with Penrith officials to see what final offer the club can come up with to keep him, it’s worth looking at the situation in a little more detail.

Turuva is the 2023 Dally M Rookie of the Year, that means he was the number one rookie in the whole NRL. That’s right, he was voted the best newcomer from 17 clubs.

In doing so, Turuva became just the second Panther to win the award since Penrith legend Greg Alexander in 1984. Last year the man they call ‘Tito’ scored 12 tries, averaged 166 metres and made over four tackle breaks a game.

He’s started the 2024 season on fire, scoring six tries in just five games including a triple against the Roosters in Round 4. You could almost see his price rising with every try he scored that night.

GRASS IS NOT ALWAYS GREENER lang on league analysis

with Peter Lang

The Panthers have reportedly offered him $350,000 a season, which for a second-year winger is not bad coin. It’s not an insulting offer however salary cap constraints will hamper the club’s ability to offer him too much more.

Stories have since come out that Turuva harbours a desire to play fullback, something he won’t get the opportunity to do at Penrith with Dylan Edwards locked up until 2027 and playing the best football of his career.

Turuva has been quoted repeatedly as saying he wants to stay with Penrith, that he really doesn’t want to go anywhere else.

The Sydney Morning Herald have already reported that the Dragons have weighed in with a hefty three-year offer, which will financially blow the Panthers’ offer out of the water. Not only that but

they’ve hinted that he will also get the opportunity to play fullback, a position Turuva is also interested in.

So how much should he have to give up to stay with Penrith?

Should he accept $75,000 a season less, how about $100,000?

That’s a lot of money, especially if you times it by three.

Penrith have already lost Jarome Luai to the Tigers to a big money offer.

They won’t want to lose Turuva as well.

Not only is he a fan favourite but his teammates love him and the kid is special. He’s not just ‘another winger’.

So, it all comes down to this upcoming meeting, when the Panthers will table their final offer to Turuva and his management.

The Fijian international has a huge decision to make and it’s not an easy one. Go for a lot more money and the opportunity to play fullback or stay with your mates in a place you love for a lot less.

You can’t blame the bloke no matter which decision he makes.

But don’t be fooled into thinking that all players are equal under the watchful eye of the coach or the club.

A high-profile NFL coach many years ago once famously sacked a player from his ‘special teams’ squad because he fell asleep during a team meeting.

A reporter asked the coach, what would he have done if it was his quarterback?

“That’s easy,” he said. “I would’ve woken him up!”

For the record, if Sunia Turuva fell asleep during a team meeting, I’d wake him up too.

Sunia Turuva has a major life decision ahead. Photo: NRL Photos.

panther memories

If you were a Panthers fan in the late 1990s and early 2000s, you no doubt cheered Chris Hicks across the line plenty of times. Hicks made his first grade debut in the 1997 Super League season, playing three games with the Panthers that season.

The winger played 11 games the following year before becoming a permanent fixture in the team from 1999, playing in the vast majority of Penrith games until 2002 when he played 16 matches.

In total, he played 101 matches for Penrith before moving on to Manly for the 2003 season – narrowly missing out on being part of the Panthers’ Premiership success.

Incredibly, he left Manly in 2007 – again, a year before they won the Premiership.

In what became a long NRL career, he also played a season with Parramatta and three years in England. He played 201 first grade games in Australia and 82 overseas.

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