Defending Premiers Penrith Panthers tonight snuck home to an unimpressive 6 point win against the lowly Gold Coast Titans, in the 650th NRL game played at BlueBet Stadium.
Penrith got off to a good and early lead after just 7 minutes when Dylan Edwards received a bad ball, shaped to pass but held it with the defence on him. He then slipped the tackle of Brian Kelly before firing a pass to Brian To'o who scored in the corner. Paul Alamoti failed to convert from the sideline.
The Titans replied 10 minutes later when Jayden Campbell picked up a loose ball then produced some great sidesteps to get into the clear before racing away to score a good solo try. He converted his own try to give the Titans the lead.
Some ill-disciplined and unimaginative play by both sides saw the scores unchanged at halftime.
Three minutes after play resumed, Edwards ran back on the inside, dodged a bunch of flat-footed defenders to score a soft solo try near the posts. Alamoti converted.
Five minutes later, Jarome Luai put in a delicate grubber near the Titans line, which bounced up perfectly for Luke Garner, who regathered and scored. Alamoti again converted and it looked like the Panthers attack had finally woken up.
The Bunker denied the Panthers a try in the 59th minute and then they denied the Titans a try less than 2 minutes later. Then they denied Alamoti a try in the 63rd minute.
The Titans narrowed the margin in the 70th minute when a stray pass by the Panthers, 5 metres from the Titans line, went behind everyone. Alofiana Khan-Pereira cleaned it up and raced 90 metres to score a much needed try. Campbell converted.
In the 75th minute, Luai copped a high shot and Alamoti kicked a penalty goal. Both sides traded knock-ons and other assorted errors before father time put this one to bed, Penrith winning 18-12.