Penrith may have been without superstar trio Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo and Brian To’o, but it was an Origin debutant who backed up to inspire the premiership favourites to a stirring win over their nearest rivals in the game of 2026.
The Warriors would’ve fancied their chances against a weakened Panthers side but a couple of disallowed tries hurt them dearly as they fell to a thrilling 20-18 loss at CommBank Stadium where tempers threatened to boil over.
McLean Shines on Short Rest
McLean wasn’t meant to play in the Origin opener on Wednesday night, but Kalyn Ponga’s shoulder charge on Tolu Koula saw him thrust into the action where he starred with some sensational takes under the high ball and huge defensive plays. It was fitting that the 20-year-old flew through the air to score a spectacular try in the first half, while a common sense ruling by the Bunker allowed him to open the scoring in the fifth minute. His tackle in the dying minutes sealed the win when he forced an error out of Taine Tuaupiki with the Warriors on the attack.
McLean is already in the top few centres in the world, with the youngster showing NSW coach Laurie Daley that he’s ready to start if changes are made to the backline after their comeback win at Accor Stadium.
Martin Returns from Injury
While McLean is new to the Origin arena, Panthers teammate Liam Martin has been one of the first players picked over the years and would’ve been there again had he not suffered a knee injury back in round six. The aggressive edge forward has represented his state 15 times and reminded Daley that he’s ready to go should he feel the need to make any changes to the pack. Martin had a quiet return with just one run in his first stint, but he’s the sort of guy who would rip in if selected and showed his versatility with a powerful second stint in the middle.
His return was a huge boost for Penrith who decided to rest three of their biggest stars, with the gamble paying off on Sunday night. Jack Cogger had huge boots to fill with Cleary missing, and he got through a mountain of tackles and set up two tries to help them move four points clear at the top of the table.
Fisher-Harris Sparks Melee
James Fisher-Harris might be one of Penrith’s greatest forwards, but he was public enemy number one midway through the second half when he laughed in the face of Paul Alamoti to spark a melee. Alamoti had just slipped over under a high kick which allowed Alofiana Khan-Pereira to score to put the visitors in front when Fisher-Harris raced up to get in his face. Players from both sides came together in the in-goal which fired up a big crowd of more than 17,000 fans which felt like a Warriors home game with all the noise they made.
Edwards Produces Miracle Tackle
Dylan Edwards may have lost his NSW jersey but it didn’t affect him as the stand-in skipper produced one of the great defensive plays to save his side. Jacob Laban looked certain to score his second of the night with 15 minutes to go, only for the Panthers fullback to drag him down with an exceptional legs tackle. Edwards was then denied at the other end in the following set but dusted himself off to throw the final pass for Alamoti to score to put Penrith back in front.
Missed Opportunity for Warriors
Would the Warriors have won if Mitch Barnett and Kurt Capewell had backed up from Origin? We’ll never know, but it’s something that will keep them up for a few nights after they missed the chance to draw level with Penrith at the top of the table. They were brilliant for long stretches, but two decisions came back to haunt them with both of their centres denied tries in the first half.
