Penrith punish rusty Roosters
11 hours ago | Aidan Edgecomb
Injured Penrith forwards Tony Puletua and Luke Priddis are expected to be fit for the Panthers' National Rugby League preliminary final in two weeks, coach John Lang said on Monday.
"Luke and Tony should be fine (because) we don't play for two weeks now," Lang said.
"We'll see how they go."
However, the prognosis was less optimistic for hooker Shannon Donato, who broke his hand during the 28-18 win over Brisbane at Penrith Stadium on Sunday.
"Shannon's broken his hand and these things usually take about three weeks to heal themselves," he said.
The win earned Penrith a week off and it will now meet the winner of Canberra's match with the Warriors for a spot in the grand final.
The win was Penrith's first finals win in a united competition since the last time it won the grand final in 1991.
The team spent the day in a pool recovery session, Lang said.
Lang added today's activities were indicative of the kind of week the club would have.
"It'll be steady, steady, training as normal," he said.
"The game is a fair way away, two weeks, (so) it'll be a pretty quiet week for us.
"The spotlight is off us now."
Penrith got off to a bad start yesterday, giving away an 18-4 lead to the Broncos before a try to front rower Ben Ross a minute before halftime pulled it back to 18-10 and got it back in the game.
Lang said he wasn't worried by the halftime deficit.
"We were pretty confident at halftime," he said.
"We thought with the wind and being able to get field position we would be able to get points on the board."
Lang also refused to criticise video referees Chris Ward and Mick Stone despite what looked to be two controversial decisions.
Brisbane winger Stuart Kelly was awarded a try despite what appeared to be a knock-on in the lead up.
Then Scott Minto's try was green lighted even after he looked to have a foot in touch and Preston Campbell may have been obstructed by a Broncos defender.
"I think they were just tight calls that went against us early," he said.