Panthers through to Semi-Finals as Canterbury farewell Perrett

v BYE

The Penrith Panthers are through to an Elimination Semi-Final against the Canberra Raiders as they have knocked out the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, 28-10, in front of 22,631 fans at Allianz Stadium.

The Panthers held possession early in the contest, and they employed a game play which saw them continually caught wiht the ball on last tackle. This tactic forced the Bulldogs to play out of their own red zone. 

First points of the game came at the hands of the Canterbury-Bankstown side as Moses Mbye fooled the Penrith sliding defensive line to bolt into a hole created by Bryce Cartwright. MBye unable to convert the try, Bulldogs led 4-0 after 14 minutes.

Moses Mbye opted for the extension in the score at the 26th minute with a successful penalty goal to give the Bulldogs a 6-0 lead.

A turn in the game saw the Panthers collect their first points as Nathan Cleary crafted a four-pointer to set up Dallin Watene Zelezniak in the western corner via a floating pass. Penrith unable to add the conversion saw them down by two points at half time, 6-4.

Minutes into the second half, Canterbury-Bankstown were without their fullback as Brett Morris limped off the field aside a trainer due to a knee injury. 

The points flowed for the Panthers as they troubled the scoreboard attendant four times in the second forty minutes. Their gameplay shifted to run around the larger Bulldogs pack after the first half strategy failed to prosper. 

Josh Mansour had several opportunities to stretch his legs, including a 60 metre run in the 43rd minute which saw Waqa Blake crash over in the corner to give his side a 10-6 lead.

It was a silky and skilful play from the Panthers utility, Tyrone Peachey who managed to break free of several Bulldogs defence. Peaches provided Peter Wallace a pin-point pass to score untouched under the posts. Penrith surging as they climbed to a 10 point advantage come the 55th minute.

Tyrone Peachey was in the action several minutes later, on this occasion he added his name to the board as he darted back on the angle into the Bulldogs try line. Nathan Cleary opted to ensure the Panthers finals position with a penalty goal at the 65th minute to give his side a three converted try lead.

Josh Mansour posted the final points for the Panthers inside the final five minutes as his speed was on display once again as he bolted 40 metres away from the Bulldogs chasers. Penrith extended to a 22 point lead as the Bulldogs season drew to a close.

Sam Perrett had the final say in his last NRL game as he crossed next to the uprights for the Bulldogs courtesy a short pass from Tony Williams. Perrett given the conversion duties in what as become a tradition for retiring players.

The Penrith Panthers will now travel to the Nation's capital as they prepare for the Canberra Raiders on Saturday Night in a sudden death Semi-Final. The winner will face the Melbourne Storm in Week 3. Meanwhile for the Bulldogs, they will return to Belmore as they reflect the season that was.