Penrith

NRL promises to act against alleged racial abuse at Warriors game

Eight young males were escorted from the ground by police during the first half of Penrith's 18-12 victory.

NRL acting CEO Andrew Abdo said the governing body took the matter extremely seriously.

"Racism and vilification will not be tolerated in our game," he said.

"Bringing communities and cultures together is part of rugby league. We pride ourselves on being inclusive and taking a leadership role in driving social change.

"Any fan found to have racially abused a player or another fan will not be welcome at our games.

Sharks survive Penrith comeback

 

Down 18-0 after 30 minutes on Friday night, the Panthers mounted a memorable fightback but fell agonisingly short in front of 19,211 at Allianz Stadium.

A 75th-minute field goal to Sharks halfback Chad Townsend proved decisive as rival playmaker Nathan Cleary hooked his attempt to level the contest soon after.

The Sharks now meet arch-rivals Melbourne at AAMI Park next Friday night in what shapes as a mouth-watering preliminary final.

Warriors on wrong side of rout

Without their State of Origin stars Nathan Cleary, James Maloney and Tyrone Peachey and injured duo Josh Mansour and Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Penrith's premiership hopes were supercharged by rookie Jarome Luai in the six tries to one rout.

Playing just the second NRL game of his career, Luai scored two tries, set up a third and had a hand in two more in an eye-catching effort.

He also nailed six of eight goals to finish with a personal 20-point haul.

The victory ends a worrying two-game slide for the Panthers that had some questioning their title ambitions.

Penrith give Garth Brennan another title

The Panthers added to the Sydney Roosters' weekend from hell after Saturday night's NRL loss, with the 20-12 win coming over the Tri-colours feeder club.

Brennan is credited with developing the wealth of talent at the foot of the Blue Mountains, and is considered a candidate for the vacant Gold Coast top job.

After winning the under-20s in 2013 with the likes of Bryce Cartwright and Reagan Campbell-Gillard, he has since claimed the 2014 and now 2017 NSW Cup titles.

McKendry cops two, Napa to challenge

Penrith's Sam McKendry will miss two matches after pleading guilty to a shoulder charge, while Roosters prop Dylan Napa will challenge his careless high tackle charge at the NRL judiciary on Wednesday.

McKendry will miss the Panthers' upcoming matches against Manly and South Sydney over the hit on Melbourne's Cameron Munster late in the Panthers' loss to the Storm on Saturday night.

Raiders duo Shannon Boyd and Jack Wighton are also suspended this week after pleading guilty to a shoulder charge and making contact with an official respectively.

Griffin laments crucial defensive lapses

Griffin was upset with the Panthers' first-half defensive efforts as the Storm were able to clear their lines too easily. 

"I thought we didn't have the 80 minutes of footy in us that we needed," Griffin said. 

"We started very well and in the second half we clawed our way back into the game physically, but over the whole 80 minutes we just weren't strong enough. 

"They got out of their end far too easily in the first half with penalties and our lack of defensive pressure. 

Segeyaro set to exit Penrith after 2016

Panthers general manager of football Phil Gould said the crafty hooker, who has been dropped for Saturday's clash with Melbourne, would not be offered a deal for next year.

"That's a salary cap issue, I don't think we're going to be able to offer James a contract for next year and we've already told him that," Gould told Sky Sports Radio's Big Sports Breakfast.