The NRL trophy stays in Penrith for another 12 months at least after one of the most authoritative grand final wins of all time, subduing archrival Parramatta 28-12.
The Panthers justified their red-hot favouritism, keeping their tryline intact for 76 minutes to comfortably cover the 8.5-point line. The Eels’ late flurry carried the decider over the 38.5 total points line but could not deflect from the Panthers’ utter dominance.
Panthers Cement Status Among Greatest Teams
Sustained excellence is painstakingly difficult to achieve in the NRL, but Penrith’s efforts of the past three seasons stand up alongside the finest club combinations the premiership has ever seen.
An astonishing record of 67 wins in 77 games since the start of 2020 has culminated in three straight grand final appearances and only the second back-to-back success of the past quarter-century.
Exiting stars Apisai Koroisau and Viliame Kikau will take some replacing, while Ivan Cleary will have new assistants on board with Cameron Ciraldo and Andrew Webster taking up head coach gigs elsewhere.
But the Panthers’ insane, unprecedented achievement in winning the SG Ball, Jersey Flegg and NSW Cup premierships as well as the NRL crown should have the rest of the competition shaking in their boots.
The juggernaut shows no signs of slowing down with so many of Penrith’s stars arguably still yet to hit their peak. The Panthers will set out next season to become the first team since the 1981-83 Eels to win three straight titles – and they’re just $4 to do so in the futures market 364 days out from the 2023 grand final.
Ruthless After Weathering Early Storm
The first 10 minutes were as brutal and absorbing as any opening period in recent grand final history, Parramatta coming out of the blocks confident and physical to confront the Penrith machine as potentially one of the great deciders looked set to unfold.
A brazen early-tackle kick ahead typified the caution-to-the-wind approach the effervescent Eels needed to take to unsettle the Panthers. But soon afterwards the Panthers rolled downfield and opened up a hole for Stephen Crichton to pour through and score.
Penrith’s foot barely left Parramatta’s foot for the next hour. There was little flash or out-and-out brilliance because there was little need for it – just hard, relentless, methodical football from an impeccably-drilled team that battered their opponents into submission.
The contest was essentially over at 18-0 at halftime but the Panthers’ hunger remained insatiable, snuffing out the Eels’ desperate attempts to climb back into the match and responding with clockwork offence to keep the scoreboard ticking over.
Led by ferocious Kiwi props James Fisher-Harris and Moses Leota, the Penrith pack unequivocally won the engine-room battle against an in-form Parramatta forward unit.
The Eels’ two late tries added some respectability but there’s no question the Panthers’ performance was as dominant and uncompromising as any ever produced on the grand final stage.
Edwards The Great
Nathan Cleary could have easily become the first player to win consecutive Clive Churchill Medals after a display dripping with control and touches of mouth-watering class, having a hand in all five tries and carrying out all the little tasks to perfection.
But there have been few more popular recipients of the honour than courageous and industrious fullback Dylan Edwards – the $7.50 second favourite behind Cleary ($3) for the hallowed award.
The unassuming custodian ran for 291 metres, made a line-break, had three line-break assists and threw the last past for the Panthers’ first and last tries.
But the moment that clinched the Churchill was surely his scything, Sattler-esque cover tackle to bundle a flying Bailey Simonsson into touch in the 58th minute. Sixty seconds later he sent Charlie Staines over out wide to quash any miniscule hopes the Eels had of a mounting a comeback.
Brian To’o (299 metres, 3 line-breaks, two tries) and James Fisher-Harris (20 runs, 201 metres, 32 tackles) would have also been worthy winners if not for Edwards’ heroics.
Parra On The Precipice
The Eels didn’t play all that badly in the grand final – they just weren’t allowed to play well, while the rub of the green certainly wasn’t in their favour.
An inability to repel sustained Panthers pressure on their goal-line was obviously crucial and they couldn’t settle into any sort of rhythm. Maika Sivo’s bombed try in the 56th minute was excruciating, but the game was all but gone by that point.
Parramatta can be proud of its 2022 efforts despite the club’s premiership drought extending to a 36th season, proving plenty of doubters wrong by shaking off a couple of finals millstones. The Eels showed genuine character to conjure a couple of late consolation tries.
The uncomfortable truth, though, is most grand final losers don’t bounce back stronger the following season. Only two of the past 12 reached the following year’s decider, while four missed the finals altogether.
The Eels are equal-third favourites for the 2023 title at $10, but Reed Mahoney, Isaiah Papali’i, Marata Niukore and Oregon Kaufusi leave a sizeable hole with a lot riding on the gamble of signing injury-prone veteran Josh Hodgson.
Scoreline Saves NRL From Bunker Blushes
In a diabolical season for the Bunker, it was only fitting that Grant Atkins came up with a couple of howlers to wrap up 2022.
The decision to allow Brian To’o’s try early in the second half to stand flew in the face of the welter of tries that have been disallowed for obstructions in recent years.
Meanwhile, Penrith’s successful challenge of Nathan Cleary’s subsequent strip – ruling that he didn’t propel the ball forward – was an affront to rugby league common sense, physics and anyone with functioning eyeballs.
Neither call realistically affected the end result…but they undeniably blunted the Eels’ chances of a miracle revival.