The Penrith Panthers defeated the South Sydney Rabbitohs 30–10 on Thursday night at Accor Stadium, maintaining their perfect start to the 2024 campaign.
The visitors won their seventh game of the year despite having to recover from a five-day trip to New Zealand and a 22–22 tie against the Warriors.
After a back-and-forth game for the most of the first half, Daine Laurie’s first of three tries, scored just before halftime, provided the Panthers the boost they needed to continue their winning play in the second half and hold the defending premiers scoreless the entire duration.
The Panthers used Paul Alamoti and Soni Luke to somewhat make up for the losses of Tyrone Peachey, Jack Cole, and Luke Sommerton. To maintain Penrith’s lead in the NSW Cup, Laurie’s addition at five-eighth proved to be the decisive factor as he scored three consecutive tries.
Six minutes into the game, South Sydney led 4-0 thanks to an early penalty that gave the home team manoeuvres on the left wing and set up an incredible try for winger Carson Kaho in the northwest corner.
The Panthers quickly responded, using winger Jesse McLean to score in the southwest corner after winning a penalty. After 13 minutes, the visitors led 6-4 thanks to an Alamoti conversion from the sidelines.
Midway through the first half, McLean scored his second try, extending Penrith’s lead to 12-4. The team’s perseverance paid off as Penrith managed to maintain possession dominance.
With some good possession inside Penrith’s 20 minutes, South Sydney regained the lead with a goal from half Jarrett Subloo, who scored beside the posts from close range and struck the line quickly. After 29 minutes, the score was only 12–10.
In the midst of the Panthers’ chances to lead by two points at halftime, Laurie executed a brilliant mid-air catch of half Trent Toelau’s cross-field kick, landing in the in-goal to score next to the posts and give the visitors a comfortable 18-10 lead.
Alamoti dropped the ball in the face of 80 meters of uncontested territory early in the second half while attempting to mimic his long-range intercept from his NRL debut last week.
The Panthers overcame that close call to produce the play of the game, extending their lead to 14, the largest of the game. Following an offload just inside Souths’ half, Laurie found McLean in space on the left flank. The winger then skillfully kicked inside to Laurie, who was unmarked to recover and score behind the posts.
Penrith secured their seventh win of the season, 30-10, as the Rabbitohs attempted to throw the ball to regain momentum. However, a careless carry deep in the Panthers’ 20 allowed five-eighth Laurie to go the distance and score beneath the posts.
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