Broncos inconsistencies continue as perfect Panthers return to form

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Penrith Panthers v Brisbane Broncos

The Penrith Panthers road back to the top 8 has become a little clearer, the four time defending premiers producing their best performance of the year to sink a disappointing Broncos outfit by a scoreline of 32-8 at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday.

Despite the one sidedness of the match, it was the Broncos who had the better of the early runnings, pinning the Panthers inside their own 20 and building pressure with good kick returns. The first try of the game came when Adam Reynolds chipped across the field for his halves partner Ben Hunt, who won the aerial contest to score under the posts.

From that point on, it was all the Panthers on both sides of the ball. They quickly took advantage of a relieving penalty through Izack Tago, who was the beneficiary of a pinpoint chip kick on the 3rd from Nathan Cleary. The sides then exchanged penalty goals to lock things up at 8-8 and with less than 10 minutes to go in the first half it was still anyone's game.

It very quickly went from anyone's game to the Panthers' game, with Penrith tapping into the defensive resolve that saw them win four premierships in a row, turning away some admittedly poor attack from the Broncos with ease before a Cleary 40/20 put the "home" side on the attack.

Unlike their opponents, the Panthers wasted no time taking advantage of their opportunities. Off the back of the 40/20, young forward Luron Patea muscled his way through some soft defence to give his side a 6-point lead with two minutes left in the half. 

In the ensuing set from the kickoff, the Panthers were given a set restart that the Broncos were too pea-hearted to defend. Their defence collapsed in a broken field situation, and the man of the moment Nathan Cleary took advantage with a left foot step to score a try that was eerily similar to his famous four pointer to seal the 2023 Grand Final against the same team. All of a sudden, the Panthers were heading to the sheds with a 12-point lead despite the Broncos having the lion's share of possession and field position. 

Any hopes of a second half comeback were quickly dashed as the Panthers made short work of the Broncos right side defence, some slick ball movement from the likes of Cleary and Tago put Tom Jenkins over in the corner untouched. 

Penrith continued to turn the screws, winning the field position battle and building pressure that eventually resulted in a Jaidyn Hunt dropped ball. Another shift to the left saw the same outcome, with Tom Jenkins diving in for his second try in 10 minutes. 

The Broncos attack continued to underwhelm for the rest of the match, with poor last tackle options plaguing the majority of their redzone sets. A chaotic final 10 minutes somehow didn't produce any more points as Penrith cruised to a third win in what has otherwise been a poor 2025 campaign.

Next week the Broncos will be on the road as they prepare to face the Rabbitohs at Homebush, while the Panthers will travel further North for another game against the Cowboys.