Extra Time July 5

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LOOK AT US NOW WINNING RUN EXTENDED

Brent Naden on his way to scoring against the Warriors.

Photo: Penrith Panthers

BACKING YOUTH > P31 Peachey deal falls over as Panthers put faith in their own rising stars

MASKED PANTHER > P32 All the gossip from Pantherland including a new baby for forward Sam McKendry

EXTRA MINUTES > P43 All the latest news from around the rugby league world

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Friday, July 5, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time

the western weekender • extra time » Friday, July 5, 2019

FEATURE

PANTHERS BACK CUBS NATHAN

TAYLOR Tyrone Peachey’s rumoured shift from the Gold Coast to Penrith this season is officially on ice after the Penrith Panthers opted to upgrade two of their young stars instead.

Rookie NRL centre Brent Naden was upgraded last week, while 18- year- old prop Spencer Leniu was also promoted into Penrith’s top 30 squad before the June 30 deadline.

A Minchinbury Jets junior, Leniu began the season in Jersey Flegg but his dominant performances quickly saw him elevated to Penrith’s Canterbury Cup side.

Previously on an NRL development contract, Leniu’s recent contract upgrade means he’s now available for selection in first grade.

Leniu, who was also named in the NSW U20s team this week, said it was a dream come true to be promoted to the Panthers NRL squad.

“I had to fight back the tears when I was told I was being promoted to the top 30 as it’s something I’ve been working towards for a long time,” Leniu told Panthers Media.

“I rang my dad straight away. It was one of the best feelings ever when he shed a tear and said how proud he was of me.

“I’m blessed and honoured to now have the opportunity to train and play alongside people I have always looked up to.”

While a Peachey reunion with Penrith is on hold for now, there is a chance it could still happen in the off-season.

Peachey, who spent five seasons at the Panthers before signing with the Titans on a three-year deal last year, had been linked to a return to the foot of the Mountains after reportedly being very unhappy on the famous ‘Glitter Strip’.

Penrith recently released winger Dallin Watene-Zelezniak and centre Waqa Blake, freeing up salary cap space, but it’s understood the Panthers and Titans couldn’t reach a financial agreement on the soon to be 28-year-old.

Spencer Leniu could make his NRL debut this year. Photo: Penrith Panthers

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Friday, July 5, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time

PANTHER RUMBLINGS

with the Masked Panther

JIMMY TO GO  Hero Penrith and NSW half James

Maloney is still on track to leave the club at the end of the season, with a longterm deal in England calling. Maloney is contracted to Penrith for next season but it has always been expected that the 33-year-old would leave a year early and finish his career in the Super League. Despite his stunning form of late, Maloney’s departure is still looking likely. He’s more than comfortable with moving on, while Penrith know they can’t ask Jarome Luai to be patient for another full season. It’ll be Luai and Nathan Cleary in the halves for Penrith next season.

 Spotted: A well-dressed Manly Sea Ea-

gles coach Des Hasler walking down High Street in Penrith on Tuesday afternoon.

 The NRL has admitted The Bunker

got it wrong when it awarded Warriors winger David Fusitu’a a try in the 42nd minute of Sunday’s clash with Penrith in Auckland. “That was an error. In some ways… not an understandable error, but you can see why that was missed in the first instance,” NRL Head of Football Graham Annesley said. Annesley said there was enough evidence available to rule no-try.

 Meanwhile, Graham Annesley also

confirmed that Jarome Luai should not have been sent to the sin-bin for an incident involving Roger Tuivasa-Sheck early in the second half of Sunday’s game.

“Given that it’s not a try-scoring situation it should not have been considered a professional foul that resulted in the sin-bin,” he said. Annesley also confirmed that Penrith’s Liam Martin returned from the sin bin too early due to “human error”, with the matter under investigation.

 Former Penrith hooker Kevin Kingston and current Panthers General Manager Matt Cameron will speak at a Men of League function in Penrith next Friday.

The pair will offer tremendous insight at the event, which will cost $30 to attend and include food, a drink and a ticket to the Panthers v Titans game. The event starts at 3pm at Panthers Leagues Club.

 Scoop confirmed: I told you last week

that a development player was likely to be promoted into Penrith’s top squad before June 30. On Friday, the club confirmed that 18-year-old prop Spencer Leniu had moved into the top 30 and is now immediately available for NRL selection. Leniu started the season in Jersey Flegg and has since been elevated to the Canterbury Cup side. Those in the know suggest Leniu is almost a certainly to make his NRL debut later this season.

 To cap off what’s been a whirlwind few

weeks for Spencer Leniu, the teenager was this week named in the NSW Under 20s side to take on QLD at ANZ Stadium on Wednesday night. Fellow Panther Stephen Crichton is also in the team. NSW will be hoping to avenge last year’s 30-12 loss to QLD at Suncorp Stadium, which was their first loss since the Under 20s concept started in 2012.

 I’m still expecting Tyrone Peachey

to be back in Penrith colours next year despite a much-hyped mid-season switch not eventuating. Peachey is unhappy at the Titans and his family wants to return to Sydney. The Panthers are keen to have him back on deck but couldn’t reach a financial agreement with the Titans, who are paying the 27-year-old over-the-top dollars. In the end, Peachey may have to take a pay cut for the deal to happen – but I’m confident the switch I first told you about in early May will eventually get there.

James Maloney celebrates last weekend’s win.

Photo: NRL Photos

 Israel Folau’s controversial social media post back in April has angered many, but there’s also plenty of support for the former Wallaby. Young Penrith half Jarome Luai is amongst the 73,000 people who have ‘liked’ Folau’s much discussed post on Instagram.

 Congratulations to Sam McKendry and

his wife Kirsten who are expecting the arrival of their third child in mid-October.

 Nathan Cleary was surprisingly ruled out of State of Origin III on Wednesday despite every indication that his ankle

CC TYRES FAMILY-OWNED & OPERATED, WITH OVER 60 YEARS SERVICING THE PENRITH REGION.

would be fine for the series decider at ANZ Stadium next week. Mitchell Pearce has been brought into the squad and now gets the ultimate shot at redemption and glory in the New South Wales jumper.



The Lebanese Rugby League Federation has charged 17 players – including Panthers star Josh Mansour – with misconduct for breaching its operational

rules in relation to events surrounding last month’s Test against Fiji. Those charged will be asked to appear before a Misconduct Panel and have been suspended with immediate effect from all Lebanese rugby league activity pending the outcome of misconduct proceedings. It seems the game in Lebanon has descended into farce and they’ll likely disappear from the league landscape.

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the western weekender • extra time » Friday, July 5, 2019

Men of League Foundation Penrith Committee Kick Off Club

Friday 12 July 2019

3:00 PM

Panthers Leagues Club – Hunter Room

Cost

$30 - includes complementary drinks and finger food plus a GA ticket to Panthers v Titans

Guest

Matt Cameron Head of Football for Penrith Panthers Kevin Kingston Wellbeing and Education Coordinator Address by Walk and Talk Group

RSVP

events@menofleague.com

Other

First 100 attendees will receive a General Admission ticket to the Panthers v Titans game. A number of raffle prizes to win on the night.

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Grab a few mates and head down to our Penrith Committee Kick Off Club as we help raise funds for the Foundation

menofleague.com In lieu of attendance donations are greatly appreciated and can be made at menofleague.com

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Friday, July 5, 2019 « the western weekender

Focus set to return to club competition

ANDY RAYMOND T

his time next week we will have crowned the State of Origin series winner for 2019 and all attention will then turn back to the run to the NRL Finals series.

If the last month of footy has taught us anything it’s to expect the unexpected once August and September roll around.

A month ago the Roosters and Rabbitohs were flying on top of the ladder, the Broncos were starting to make a run and the Panthers and Dragons looked done and dusted for 2019.

Fast forward to the start of July, and during the State of Origin period, the Rabbitohs have lost four on the trot, the Roosters have dropped three of their last four games and the Broncos’ comeback has been well and truly snuffed out.

Meantime the Panthers have strung together five on the trot, the Sea Eagles have won three from four and the Storm have just kept on doing what the Storm do best with five wins from their last six games!

Looking at the ladder it’s safe to say that the Storm, Rabbitohs and Roosters have all but secured their spots in the top eight,

but with just two games separating positions four to 11 on the ladder, it’s going to ensure another close race to the Finals.

You’d be a brave man to write off anyone in this competition, but given their current form you’d be hard pressed to find anyone willing to back the Cowboys, Broncos, Titans or Bulldogs to make the eight.

For me the Panthers look prime to make a run for the Finals. After this weekend’s bye they have a run of three home games against the Titans, Dragons and Raiders, three games that coach Ivan Cleary will believe his side can win.

If the Panthers can manage to win those three games not only will they find themselves in the eight, they very well could set themselves up for a top four finish, something that seemed impossible only a month ago.

I think we’ll also get a good gauge of the Sea Eagles’ top eight credentials in the next month with games against the Rabbitohs, Storm, Knights and Eels.

Speaking of the Eels, they showed in Darwin that they are far from a spent force in this competition.

The Eels are currently sitting eighth on

the western weekender • extra time » Friday, July 5, 2019

Brought to you by

James Tamou scores for Penrith last weekend. Photo: NRL Photos the ladder thanks to for and against and with games against the Tigers, Sea Eagles, Warriors and Dragons in the next month, they have the chance to book their ticket to September.

It’s set to be an intriguing run home to the Finals and it all begins with the next month of footy. Bring it on!

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Friday, July 5, 2019 « the western weekender

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Friday, July 5, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time

NRL LADDER AND FIXTURES PD

W

D

L

B

F

A

14

12

0

2

1

359

169

2 Rabbitohs

15 10

0

5

0

335

244

+91

3 Roosters

14

9

0

5

1

335

246

+89 20

4 Raiders

15

9

0

6

0

303

222

+81

18

5 Knights

14

8

0

6

1

301

242

+59

18

6 Sea Eagles

15

9

0

6

0

311

267

+44

18

7 Sharks

14

7

0

7

1

284

266

+18

16

8 Eels

15

8

0

7

0

333

322

+11

16

9 W. Tigers

14

7

0

7

1

249

289

-40

16

CLUB

1

Storm

+/-

PTS

+190 26 20

10 Dragons

14

6

0

8

1

259

313

-54

14

11 Panthers

15

7

0

8

0

215

308

-93

14

12 Warriors

14

5

0

9

1

258

297

-39

12

13 Cowboys

15

6

0

9

0

252

312

-60

12

14 Broncos

14

5

0

9

1

231

297

-66

12

15 Titans

15

4

0

11

0

264

335

-71

8

16 Bulldogs

15

4

0

11

0

190

350 -160

8

Round 16

FACE IN THE CROWD

/ Thursday, July 4 7.50pm WIN Stadium

/ Friday, July 5 7.55pm Bankwest Stadium

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Wednesday, July 10 8.10pm ANZ Stadium

Extra Time Issue Number 2019-017 PRODUCED BY The Western Weekender EDITOR Troy Dodds / 4722 2998 / troy.dodds@westernweekender.com.au CONTRIBUTORS Nathan Taylor / Clinton Maynard / Andy Raymond SALES DIRECTOR Chris Pennisi / 4722 2998 chris.pennisi@westernweekender.com.au

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John Lang axed It’s never easy to give a coach his marching orders, but even more difficult when that coach has brought your club a premiership.

This was the problem facing CEO Glenn Matthews in 2006, as he pondered the future of 2003 premiershipwinning mentor John Lang.

Lang’s Panthers had gone from the heights of that premiership in 2003 and a Finals appearance in 2004 to falling off the radar in 2005 – finishing outside of the top eight despite winning their final five games of the season.

During the 2005- 2006 offseason, things weren’t looking good for the Panthers.

The Board had been forced to strip Craig Gower of the captaincy and fine him $30,000 over an off- field issue, disrupting preparations for the season ahead.

With things looking a little shaky at the Panthers, Mr Matthews sprung into action and before a ball had been kicked in the competition proper, he sacked John Lang.

Lang remained in charge for the 2006 season to warm the chair for Matthew Elliott, who would take over in 2007.

“We all learned a lot from John but it’s time for our organisation to change,” Mr Matthews said.

The situation turned somewhat sour with the manner in which Lang was sacked becoming the major issue.

Lang had always believed he would be the first to know if there was an issue regarding his future at the Panthers, but media reports suggested that Mr Matthews was already negotiating with Elliott in the weeks leading up to the Lang sacking.

Despite the pre - season drama, Lang coached Penrith to wins over the Bulldogs and Dragons in their opening games of the season, but inconsistent form saw Penrith miss out on the top eight. Lang’s last win with the Panthers came in round 23 when they beat Cronulla 32- 28 at Toyota Park, with losses to the Knights and Bulldogs to round out the season.

SCOREBOARD NRL

PANTHERS 19 WARRIORS 18

NSW CUP

DRAGONS 24 PANTHERS 22

JERSEY FLEGG

John Lang celebrates the 2003 premiership Despite losing to Canterbury in the final home game of the season, Lang was given a fitting farewell by the fans he had brought so much joy, with a deserved lap of honour.

In the Men in Black book, Lang talks about the difficulties he faced after the success of 2003.

“In 2003 we had a great year, in 2004 a good one. You go through highs and lows.

We started ‘05 not believing

the western weekender • extra time » Friday, July 5, 2019

Panther Flashback ashback

it was going to happen for us, but hoping it would,” he said.

“Then when it wasn’t happening for us we weren’t able to put things right. We were feeling that pressure from day one.”

While John Lang’s departure from the Panthers could have been handled better, he will forever be remembered as the man that brought the club its second premiership and for that, he will forever be a club legend.

PANTHERS 24 DRAGONS 16

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Friday, July 5, 2019 « the western weekender • extra time

Brought to you by

Horror weekend puts referees in the spotlight

CLINTON MAYNARD R

ound 15 proved it’s time the NRL reviewed the use of the Send Off rule and the Sin Bin because it seems referees have little idea of how to use them.

Thankfully South Sydney’s George Burgess was referred straight to the judiciary for his blatant eye gouge on Robbie Farah.

While justice has been served with a nine match suspension, the question must be asked why he wasn’t sent from the field given the circumstances?

Hundreds of thousands of viewers clearly saw what happened on television, one of the most blatant low acts we’ve seen on camera in years.

Yet Burgess remained on the field.

Why didn’t the officials in the Bunker alert the on field referees as to what happened?

Just 24 hours earlier the NRL released a statement outlining a much needed crackdown on the crusher tackle.

As part of the crackdown referees have been told to send players off and also use the Sin Bin. In many respects an eye gouge is a lower

act than a crusher, yet the refs couldn’t bring themselves to send Burgess off.

Surely it’s time the referees were clearly given some direction on the use of the Send Off rule or there’s little point in it being in the game.

The use of the Sin Bin is not much better. Several players were sent to the bin over the weekend however there’s little consistency on how the power is used.

Penrith’s Jarome Luai was laughably sin binned for a professional foul but review of the video clearly shows he didn’t cause Roger Tuivasa- Sheck to trip over. The Warriors scored while he was in the bin (albeit controversially).

Meanwhile Parramatta’s Peni Terepo was not sin binned for a clear swinging arm that sent Canberra’s Jordan Rapana off the field for a concussion test. The Raiders suffer because their star winger is off the field while Terepo stays on despite the bin now being available to punish foul play.

Overall the referees have performed better in 2019 but it’s time the use of both the Sin Bin and Send Off rule was reviewed.

Referee Ben Cummins officiating at a recent clash between the Panthers and Roosters at Panthers Stadium. Photo: Megan Dunn

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Gerard Sutton and Ashley Klein have

survived a weekend of horrors to be named referees for the third and deciding State of Origin match in Sydney on Wednesday night. NRL Head of Football Graham Annesley said on Monday that errors made across Round 15 of the NRL would not be the sole factor in appointing the referees for Origin. “I can’t say to you that any one of these decisions would mean that a particular official would or would not get an Origin nod,” he said.

Queensland have named Dragons

playmaker Corey Norman and Storm prop Christian Welch to make their Maroons debuts next week against the Blues.

Meanwhile, NSW coach Brad Fittler named an unchanged Blues team, but was forced to draft David Klemmer into the side after Tariq Sims was suspended.

Mitchell Pearce is also a late addition, replacing the injured Nathan Cleary.

Bad news for Newcastle with winger

Edrick Lee to miss up to three months of football after suffering a broken arm in the Knights’ win over Brisbane. Meanwhile, Kalyn Ponga will miss this weekend’s clash with the Warriors (as well as State of Origin III) but is a chance of playing against the Bulldogs in Round 17.

Souths forward George Burgess has

been suspended for nine weeks after that awful eye-gouge on Wests Tigers hooker Robbie Farah last Friday night.

Brisbane coach Anthony Seibold isn’t

having the season he expected at the powerhouse club. The side’s form is slipping and an injury crisis has now hit.

Anthony Milford and Richie Kennar are out indefinitely with knee and shoulder injuries respectively, while Alex Glenn and Tom Deardon remain sidelined. Jack Bird is out for the season. With Brisbane releasing several key players as well, it makes for a challenging time for Seibold with the Broncos facing the unfamiliar reality of missing the Finals.

Warriors coach Stephen Kearney

was outraged that he was asked if he was preparing for next season after last weekend’s 19-18 loss to the Panthers in Auckland. A fired up Kearney said he was “offended” by the questioning, saying he’s still focused on having a successful finish to the 2019 season.

We’re not sure if Fox League’s decision to shift ‘NRL 360’ to a 7.30pm timeslot is working. Monday night’s edition attracted just 39,000 viewers, beaten by

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the western weekender • extra time » Friday, July 5, 2019

EXTRA MINUTES

The NRL’s Graham Annesley speaking with the media this week re-runs of ‘The Simpsons’ and ‘Family Guy’. ‘Controversy Corner’, which moved to Monday nights this week, didn’t even make the top 20. We’re hearing there

will be an overhaul of programming at Fox League in the upcoming off-season.

The Professor’s Friday night show would surely be in the firing line.

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