That is simply what rugby league is now — all of us run round for a couple of months, groups rise and fall and, ultimately, the Panthers win.
They’ve a standing reservation at Stadium Australia each October and so they by no means, ever miss it. We may all have saved numerous time over the previous few years by simply leaving the premiership trophy within the lobby of the Panthers Leagues Membership.
Their 14-6 grand last victory over Melbourne was not dramatic and cathartic, like their first conquer the Rabbitohs again in 2021.
Nor was it dominant and livid, just like the grand last win over Parramatta in 2022 and it wasn’t a miracle, like final yr’s resurrection towards Brisbane.
However it was their most smothering win and maybe one which finest displays the qualities which have made them immortal. The method of victory is a lifestyle for them at this level.
The foundations have been the identical as ever — energy yardage runs, a defensive zeal that have to be seen to be believed and an insatiable starvation not simply to win, however to make their opponents lose.
They locked their jaws onto the Storm and didn’t let go. They smothered them and didn’t allow them to breathe. It regarded prefer it damage.
This was a footballing suffocation, the type Melbourne have been so good at within the early Craig Bellamy years and it was lovely to look at, albeit in a brutal, horribly uncomfortable form of method.
They confirmed but once more they’re a crew that finds pleasure within the wrestle, who just like the struggle greater than they just like the win — and so they just like the win an terrible lot.
Aside from one miss on Harry Grant early, their defence was impregnable and their mission was clear. They pinned Melbourne down their very own finish over and over, and dared them to do one thing about it.
The Storm, attempt as they may, couldn’t escape.
The Storm are minor premiers for a purpose — even on this sport, the place they have been trying bodily outmatched for thus lengthy, they managed to seek out a few possibilities.
However the Panthers have been all the time there, holding gamers up on the final second, getting throughout in cowl, mugging Storm gamers who claimed attacking kicks, stopping raids that will have ended with tries towards actually some other crew on the planet.
They did not surrender however ultimately, the aspect that has dominated a lot of this season regarded out of concepts. Ryan Papenhuyzen and Cameron Munster tried exhausting with little luck, Grant did what he may with the little room he had and Jahrome Hughes had the quietest sport of what has been an impressive season.
Liam Martin was a deserving winner of the Clive Churchill Medal, however this was a triumph of the numerous.
Martin’s performs have been the most important, as he scored a key attempt on half-time that gave Penrith a lead that higher mirrored the run of the primary 40 earlier than he one way or the other received an aerial contest with Xavier Coates to assist arrange Paul Alamoti’s attempt.
However there have been so many others that counted — like Izack Tago’s completely timed cowl sort out on Papenhuyzen, or Alamoti’s good flip and popped cross to Jarome Luai that led to Sunia Turuva’s attempt, or Luai’s change of play within the lead-up to Martin’s rating or the powerful runs of Isaah Yeo and Brian To’o.
You might sit for days itemizing all of the little issues that added as much as their victory and that is form of the purpose. Penrith is aware of that profitable the warfare comes by means of claiming victory in a thousand smaller battles — be it one set, one run, or run sort out.
They win every thing, on a regular basis. They make a degree of it and it has been occurring so lengthy that it is troublesome to recollect what got here earlier than or to think about what may come after.
It is easy to develop into accustomed to greatness, so it can’t be stated sufficient that that is the form of run that happens a few times in a century. It’d by no means occur once more within the lifetime of anyone studying this.
There may nonetheless be a few of it left. Luai, Fisher-Harris and Turuva are leaving and their departures will check Penrith’s capacity to proceed to regenerate, however they’ve already changed extra expertise than most groups can ever hope to seek out and nothing has modified.
So who’s to say they will not go once more? Who’s to say it will ever finish? Boys have develop into males whereas this run has been going, who’s to say they will not develop previous ready for it to cross?
All of the measures designed to cease issues like this occurring have been laughably ineffective.
Penrith swept all of them apart years in the past — issues just like the wage cap squeeze and the complacency that eventually claims each premiership aspect, they’re damaged on the highway behind them.
They simply preserve profitable, yearly, come hell or excessive water, it doesn’t matter what. The rugby league story now has one ending and Penrith by no means, ever get bored with telling it.
