The Penrith Panthers have opened their 2026 NRL campaign by dominating the defending Premiers Brisbane Broncos in a defensive master-class at Suncorp Stadium.
The Panthers rarely look threatened while the Broncos attack looked panicky, clumsy and worst of all, sloppy, while defensively they were ill-disciplined, particularly when they had Penrith in their own end.
The Panthers struck early when Nathan Cleary's bomb was contested by Thomas Jenkins, who lost it backwards, but winger Casey McLean pounced on the loose ball to race over in the left corner for the try. Cleary's sideline conversion attempt hit the upright.
In the 18th minute fullback Dylan Edwards crossed for the 10,000th premiership try in Queensland. Receiving the ball on the left edge, he stepped inside through a gap and dived over. Cleary added the extras.
In the 33rd minute Cleary potted a penalty goal and then, on the stroke of halftime, Blaize Talagi shrugged off a tackle before kicking across field to the left wing, where Jenkins was perfectly placed to catch the ball and fall over the line. Cleary converted from the sideline. At halftime, the Panthers had a comfortable 18-0 lead.
18 minutes into the second half, another penalty to the Panthers allowed Cleary to extend his sides lead by 2 more points.
The game was finally put to bed with 6 minutes remaining when Thomas Jenkins scored his second try of the night with a brilliant intercept, before racing 35 metres to score. Cleary converted from the left touchline. The Panthers winning 26-0.
The Broncos rarely got themselves into good attacking position, largely due to the Panthers stellar defence, but also due to the haphazard attack of the Broncos. They went away from what worked so well last year and were playing like they haven't seen each other since last years Grand Final. Reece Walsh was kept quiet, Adam Reynolds was scarcely involved and Payne Haas up front was kept under wraps for the majority of the game.
Dylan Edwards was solid for the Panthers, as were back rowers Luke Garner and Isaiah Papali'i. Penrith too threw away a few chances, especially on the right side. However it was their defence that won them this game and in that department the Panthers were absolutely elite.