Penrith honoured to start year with diabolical fixture
Jasper Bruce |
Ivan Cleary says it’s an honour and mark of Penrith’s heavyweight status that the Panthers are starting the NRL season with the toughest fixture of any team.
The Panthers kick off their new season on Friday against reigning premiers Brisbane at Suncorp Stadium, where the Broncos ended Penrith’s rollercoaster 2025 campaign and run of consecutive grand final triumphs.
“It’s quite romantic, you turn up to the place we lost, the same game, last year,” coach Cleary said.
Penrith then faces fellow 2025 preliminary finalists Cronulla, premiership fancies Sydney Roosters, bogey side Parramatta, runners-up Melbourne and another member of last year’s top four Canterbury, in successive weeks.
No other team plays five of last year’s top eight in the opening six weeks and the Panthers do it all without a bye and while Penrith Stadium remains out of commission for refurbishment.
But Cleary is happy to be running the gauntlet so early in the year.
“I feel like it’s an honour for us,” he said.
“We’ve been playing the big teams in the big games, it’s definitely something I feel like that we’ve earned. It’s something to look forward to.
“I feel like in the past, our team’s been at our best when we’ve been playing big contests.”
The tough draw comes as the Panthers fight to avoid a repeat of the slow start that threatened to cruel their 2025 campaign.
Penrith memorably slumped to last on the ladder after 12 rounds last year, before a nine-game winning streak punched their ticket to finals.
It came as the Panthers adjusted to the departures of key men Jarome Luai and James Fisher-Harris as well as their new home stadium in Parramatta.
“We certainly highlighted a couple of things that we feel like will help us be a little more consistent when you’re navigating the early parts of the season,” Cleary said.
Roster stability could play into the Panthers’ hand this year as well.
For the first time since surging to heavyweight status in the 2020 season, Penrith did not lose a member of their best starting side over the off-season.
“To be able to have a good pre-season together as a team, we’re definitely feeling pretty connected,” Cleary said.
Immediately after the heartbreaking preliminary-final loss to Brisbane, Cleary was bullish that while the Panthers’ run of four successive premierships had ended, their dynasty was not over.
Five months on, he felt the Panthers had primed themselves for another year of success.
“It’s just crazy the way that we’ve been able to finish seasons the years gone by. You can’t even imagine, year after year, finishing at the top of the mountain,” he said.
“It was a different feeling last year, for sure. I feel like there was definitely some fire in that. It certainly looks that way.
“I’m happy with the squad we have, I’m happy with the way we’ve prepared. I feel like we’re going to be very competitive.”
AAP