Lachlan Jeffery previews Saturday afternoon’s Magic Round clash between the Warriors and Panthers
MATCHDAY NEWS
MATCHDAY SCHEDULE
New Zealand Warriors Vs Penrith Panthers
Venue: Suncorp Stadium
Date: Saturday May 6, 3:00pm
MATCHDAY TEAM NEWS
Warriors: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad 2. Dallin Watene-Zelezniak 3. Marcelo Montoya 4. Adam Pompey 5. Edward Kosi 6. Dylan Walker 7. Shaun Johnson 8. Addin Fonua-Blake 9. Wayde Egan 10. Bunty Afoa 11. Jackson Ford 12. Marata Niukore 13. Tohu Harris 14. Bayley Sironen 15. Josh Curran 16. Demitric Sifakula 17. Tom Ale 18. Freddy Lussick 20. Taine Tuaupiki 21. Viliami Vailea 22. Ronald Volkman 23. Kalani Going
Panthers: 1. Dylan Edwards 2. Sunia Turuva 3. Tyrone Peachey 4. Stephen Crichton 5. Brian To’o 6. Jarome Luai 7. Nathan Cleary 8. Moses Leota 9. Mitch Kenny 10. James Fisher-Harris 11. Scott Sorensen 12. Zac Hosking 13. Isaah Yeo 14. Soni Luke 15. Lindsay Smith 16. Liam Henry 17. Jaeman Salmon 18. Jack Cogger 19. Luke Garner 20. Thomas Jenkins 21. Spencer Leniu 22. Chris Smith
Referee: Todd Smith
Embed from Getty ImagesMATCHDAY PREVIEW
A fortnight ago, the Warriors and Panthers were the form teams of the competition. Since then, both have suffered back-to-back losses and are in danger of dropping out of the top 8 by the end of the weekend.
After a pair of hard-fought losses to the Storm and Roosters, the Warriors get a huge double boost with Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad (concussion) and Tohu Harris (knee) both named to return to the side, with Josh Curran moving to the bench and Freddy Lussick and Viliami Vailea dropping to the reserves.
The Panthers are also boosted by returning troops following losses to the Rabbitohs and Tigers, with James Fisher-Harris returning from a knee injury that has kept him out for a month. Spencer Leniu is also a chance of returning from a calf injury, listed among the reserves.
After a strong start to the season, back-to-back losses have brought the Warriors back to the pack. A valiant effort against the Storm on ANZAC Day resulted in a 30-22 loss, which they followed up five days later against the Roosters in Auckland, being shut out 14-0 in awful conditions. Defence will again be key against a Panthers attack that has struggled for rhythm in 2023, especially on a fast, dry Brisbane track.
The Panthers meanwhile have yet to hit the standards of the previous three years, with their last-gasp loss to Souths and shock 12-8 defeat against Wests Tigers being prime examples of games they wouldn’t have lost in previous years. While they still have the best defence in the game, it’s attack that has let them down.
The Panthers have dominated this match-up previously, winning 30 of the 49 overall games between the two sides, including 16 of the past 20 since 2012. More recently, the Panthers have won their past six straight matches over the Warriors, going back to 2019. They also won their only previous meeting at the venue, 30-16, in 2021.
These two sides have never met in Magic Round. The Warriors have only won once in Magic Round (2019), while the Panthers have only lost once (also 2019). The Warriors rank 6th overall in terms of Magic Round points scored (74), but 13th in terms of points conceded (84). The Panthers rank 4th in terms of Magic Round points scored (84) and 1st by points conceded (48).
LAST TEN MATCHES
Panthers 8, Warriors 2
MATCHDAY PREDICTION
Panthers by 4 points.
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