Penrith Panthers Crush Brisbane Broncos 26-0 in NRL Season Opener
The Penrith Panthers have emphatically declared their dynasty remains intact with a commanding 26-0 victory over defending premiers Brisbane Broncos at Suncorp Stadium. In front of a stunned crowd of 45,566 mostly silent fans, the Panthers' proven stars orchestrated a dominant performance that felt like a rewind to their 2021-2024 premiership years.
Panthers' Big Three in Command
Penrith led the bumbling Broncos 18-0 at halftime with the 'Big Three' of Dylan Edwards, Nathan Cleary and Isaah Yeo in complete control. Fellow four-time title winner Brian To'o was also enormous on the wing, while young winger Thomas Jenkins scored a double in a standout performance.
Dylan Edwards started the season on fire, clearly outplaying opposite number Reece Walsh. The 30-year-old fullback had his desire, elusiveness and pace all dialled in, making the Panthers look significantly better as a result. Edwards stepped his way through Brisbane's defence with a great turn of speed after receiving early ball from co-captain Cleary.
Broncos' Woeful Performance
Brisbane, who came back from six deficits of 10 points or more on the way to last year's title, made constant errors, appeared sluggish and were woeful under the high ball. The Broncos recorded 18 errors and a 60 percent completion rate according to skipper Adam Reynolds, who admitted: "We need to work on that."
Coach Michael Maguire conceded the Broncos were never in the contest. "We put so much pressure on ourselves," he said. "They came here and applied pressure and we didn't build any." Maguire had named Ben Hunt on the bench but started him at five-eighth ahead of Ezra Mam, a move that didn't work as the Broncos' spine never connected.
Walsh's Nightmare Performance
Reece Walsh was clearly out of sorts, making just eight runs for a barely believable 46 metres. The fullback was often gang-tackled and struggled throughout the match, with fans on social media tearing apart recent suggestions that he had overtaken Nathan Cleary as the NRL's best player.
One fan blasted on X (formerly Twitter): "Broncos best team in the comp. Reece Walsh best player in the comp. Yeah f****** right!! Jump off your horses." Another added: "Nobody can say Reece Walsh is the best player in the game. His best games are elite but he has way too many bad games."
Fans even referenced Walsh's toilet stunt from last year, with one commenting: "Someone please get Reece Walsh some toilet water ??" and another adding: "Not enough toilet water."
Cleary's Masterclass
In his 100th game as captain, Nathan Cleary controlled the match with his kicking game particularly effective. Lock Isaah Yeo dominated the middle of the field, while the Panthers' communication and positioning pleased their star halfback.
"There is definitely a lot of room for improvement, but at various stages we were looking for the right things and communicating well," Cleary said. "That is pleasing signs. We knew it wasn't going to be perfect in round one but I was pleased that we were putting ourselves in the right positions, competing hard and finding our way to points."
Match Highlights
Penrith centre Casey McLean scored first after winger Thomas Jenkins, a late inclusion, leapt above Walsh from a Cleary bomb. Brisbane winger Deine Mariner had a shocker and struggled under Cleary's high balls, with one of his spills proving costly.
In the 40th minute, young gun five-eighth Blaize Talagi lobbed a composed cross-field kick for Jenkins to score. The Broncos only kept themselves in it with scrambling defence as their attack was terrible.
Walsh threw one slick pass that centre Kotoni Staggs almost scored from, but desperate defence by McLean saved the day. Jenkins then intercepted a Walsh pass to score his second try and complete the Panthers' dominance.
These sides have played two of the most memorable finals of recent years, with the Panthers coming back from the dead to win the 2023 grand final 26-24 and the Broncos, down 14-0 at halftime, winning 16-14 in last year's preliminary final in Brisbane. However, Friday's match showed Penrith's championship pedigree remains firmly intact.
