2022 Preview: Penrith Panthers

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After ascending the NRL title summit, staying there for more than one season is often the hardest task. Today Josh Robertson looks at the reigning premiers Penrith and how their 2022 season might pan out as our NRL club preview series continues.

In the last few years when penning these yearly columns, I've talked about Penrith 'promising the world, but delivering an atlas' - coming so close to doing so in 2020 made way for the incredible year that was 2021 - where they just about delivered the whole universe for the club and its fans.

The question for 2022, is can the Panthers put aside the emotion of winning the 2021 premiership and become one of the rare teams to go back-to-back, in what will be the final season at the club's long-time home stadium in Penrith before it's knocked down and rebuilt.

There were (and will always be) people who claim Penrith were "lucky" in 2020 and 2021, but in Rugby League, you need to create your own luck and opportunities - that is exactly what the Panthers can do again in 2022. The Panthers finished second on the NRL ladder, and what is forgotten by many is that it was only on for-and-against that Penrith finished behind the Storm, and that they were a better defensive side - conceding 30 fewer points than the side that was considered "far and away the best" of the year.

Managing to have a season like this yet again will be tough for Penrith, with a number of key losses. The other 15 clubs will be gunning for Penrith, who showed that despite being the star team of the past two seasons, they are not infallible and there are plenty of chinks in the armour.

Why they'll win It

Desire - within. This isn't a squad of players or a club that is looking for five minutes of success, they are looking to create a dynasty. Whilst the mainframe of the squad is still there, there will never be a drop in intent, or of pride in the jersey and they will continue to look for multiple premierships. With the likes of Dylan Edwards, Jarome Luai, Nathan Cleary, Brian To'o, Stephen Crichton in the squad for a long time to come, these are players that always looking to go to the next level and seek continued success.

The Panthers' squad is still very strong despite the key losses, and stability in key positions is what is going to help them in 2022, with a wide variety of players. Penrith is blessed with talent, with the speed of players like Charlie Staines, intercept king Crichton as well the power of To'o at the back and then having the likes of James Fisher-Harris, Isaah Yeo and Viliame Kikau who all bring their own unique qualities to the outfit.

Why they won't

Desire - everywhere else. The rest of the competition will be nipping at the heels of the Panthers. With the likes of Parramatta developing strongly and the result of last year's semi-final, the Eels, in particular, will want to try and get revenge on the Panthers and as defending premiers, they will have a target on their back.

A number of key departures are going to hurt too, with the likes of Kurt Capewell and Matt Burton in particular, their leaving creating a gap in squad depth. This is especially true with Burton, who was only selected in the Panthers side as a makeshift centre but became one of the form players of the competition, as well moving into the halves when needed by Ivan Cleary.

Capewell's impact with the ball will be missed, his impact to create opportunities for the Panthers leaving a significant gap. His ball-playing skill and his hole running ability is going to be missed.

Key players

It would be pretty obvious to see Nathan Cleary as Penrith's key player, especially after returning from his shoulder injury. But looking away from the obvious, the performances of players such as James Fisher-Harris and Isaah Yeo are going to be the most important.

Fisher-Harris is the forward leader for the Panthers and the impact that he can have going forward is going to be vital for the mountain men. He also posseses very good ball-playing skills that can make things difficult for the opposition.

Yeo meanwhile is a calm head that makes the right move when the Panthers are looking frantic in attack, settling things down. A strong ball runner and ball player, his ability to take the settling run is what makes him a key figure.

Much maligned by fans of other clubs (God knows why), Dylan Edwards is a fan favourite at the Panthers and his efforts in the finals series and in particular the Grand Final win - where he had a broken foot - were impressive and showed why he is an important player. He possesses good strength and his work at the back will anchor Penrith's attack.

Breakthrough to watch

Having made his debut in 2021, J'maine Hopgood has been a star for the Panthers, coming through the grades from SG Ball up, following his move down from Queensland. Playing either second row or up front, Hopgood is a solid player who brings a lot to the team with hard running, good speed and footwork as well as the ball-playing ability that can cause issues to all sorts of teams.

Elsewhere, the letters 'MG' are synonymous with Penrith, and now not just in the past. 'MG' now has a big future at the foot of the mountains, through the big force that is Mark's Geyer's son Mavrik. A star in the lower grades, the Panthers have signed Mav on a development contract after beating out the Storm. Their faith was shown in the opening trial weekend when Penrith dominated at Commbank Stadium against the Sharks. The new Geyer possesses the strength to burst through any sort of defence but also has good speed of which - once he gets into open space - he is hard to catch.

Moving away from the forwards, to a player still eligible for the Jersey Flegg competition for another three seasons. Izack Tago is looking likely to take a starting spot for the Panthers in 2022. The youngster is another member of a potent backline development out in Penrith and has impressed in six matches in 2021. Tago can produce magic at the drop of the hat so he will be a player to watch this season.

Player movements

Inbound: Sean O'Sullivan (Warriors), Chris Smith, Christian Crichton (Canterbury)

Outbound: Matt Burton, Brent Naden, Tevita Pangai Junior (Canterbury), Kurt Capewell (Brisbane), Paul Momirovski (Sydney), Tyrone May (Catalans (SL))

Best 17

1. Dylan Edwards
2. Charlie Staines
3. Izack Tago
4. Stephen Crichton
5. Brian To'o
6. Jarome Luai
7. Nathan Cleary
8. Moses Leota
9. Api Koroisau
10. James Fisher-Harris
11. Viliame Kikau
12. Liam Martin
13. Isaah Yeo
    
14. Mitch Kenny
15. Scott Sorensen
16. Spencer Lenin
17. J'maine Hopgood

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