The Panthers are in freefall after plummeting to a hat-trick of losses for the first time in six years.
South Sydney are still a long way from being playoff locks but more importantly they are a long way ahead of their 2024 season when they sunk to a second-last placed finish.
The Rabbitohs are now 3-1 after their 28-18 triumph at Accor Stadium, blowing the premiers away with five unanswered tries in the first half.
Penrith have now lost three matches on the trot for the first time since 2019, the most recent year that they didn’t at least make the grand final.
The premiers need to be judged on how they front up when they get Nathan Cleary and Dylan Edwards back on deck but their first month of the season suggests their chances of a fifth straight premiership are in serious jeopardy.
1. Rabbitohs red hot
Even the most optimistic of Rabbitohs fans would not have dreamt of Wayne Bennett’s second coming delivering such a dominant win over the premiers.
They are 3-1 now after four rounds and although they looked out of their depth against a full-strength Sharks side last week, their victories over the Dolphins, Dragons and Panthers have been built on the old-fashioned principles that are embedded in the Bennett playbook.
Souths are not flashy like they were when Bennett took them to the 2021 grand final because they don’t have the same level of strikepower in their side.
But they are gritty and committed, and when you are against an inferior opposition or a depleted one that is struggling for form, that is often all that you need.
They get Latrell Mitchell back from his hamstring injury next week, coincidentally against his old team, South Sydney’s bitter rivals in the Roosters.
It’s hard to see Souths rising from second last in 2024 to being genuine title contenders but with Bennett bringing his unique blend of man management and a simple game plan, you can’t rule it out.
2. Panthers plummeting
They were gallant in defeat last week in Melbourne against a full-strength Storm side.
This time they were as un-Penrith like as a surfer sipping a latte.
Their forwards were outmuscled, the halves made elementary errors and the outside backs did little else apart from making carries out of their own red zone.
“The Panthers are in a frantic, submissive kind of mood,” was how their former general manager Phil Gould described their capitulation on Nine commentary.
Even Golden Boot winner Isaah Yeo was turning in elementary mistakes during the first-half surrender before they saved some face with three tries to nil in the second term.
Davvy Moale celebrates after scoring a try. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
Second-rower Scott Sorensen was ruled out in the eighth minute after he was concussed when he copped an accidental elbow to the head while making a tackle.
Trent Toelau, who started at halfback, failed to finish the match due to a knee injury with Schneider getting his first game time of 2025 for Penrith at the same ground where he sat on the bench for the entire grand final win over Melbourne last October.
And star winger Brian To’o also hobbled off with a hamstring injury which will turn Ivan Cleary’s grey hair into more of a silver shade as he tries to turn the team’s season around.
3. Johnston’s bittersweet comeback
Making his first appearance since he tore his Achilles tendon in Canberra late last season, Alex Johnstown’s presence on the left wing brought a sense of comfort to Rabbitohs fans.
After the home side drew first blood in the fifth minute when Keaton Koloamatangi pounced on a Cody Walker grubber, Johnston celebrated his return by finishing off a left-edge foray created by his five-eighth.
He appeared to injure his left shoulder in the process but bravely soldiered on and possibly missed a try he normally would have scored when he was tentative going for the corner amid Daine Laurie’s cover tackle.
The medicos shut him down at half-time amid fears that he has broken his scapula with scans on Friday to confirm the extent of the damage.
Koloamatangi nabbed a second while Davvy Moale and Jye Gray made a mockery of Penrith’s once vaunted goal line defence to propel Souths to a 28-0 avalanche by the time the half-time siren sounded.
It wasn’t a case of too little, too late when Penrith registered tries to Liam Martin and Schneider in the first 20 minutes of the second half.
But even though the margin was back to 16, time was always against them and Souths played like they were protecting their lead rather than putting the foot on the throat like a true top-class team can do.
A late Jack Cole four-pointer on the back of a Peter Mamouzelos sin bin helped Penrith put a little bit more respectability on the final scoreline.
4. Walker repaying Bennett’s faith
In ruling out making a play for Daly Cherry-Evans during the week, Bennett said Souths were more concerned with the signature of their own pensioner playmaker in Cody Walker.
The 35-year-old five-eighth is just 12 months younger than DCE but is also showing no signs of age. Well, not in a negative way anyway.
Walker’s wisdom after a decade in the NRL is first rate and although his acceleration off the mark has slowed slightly in recent years, he is still as good as anyone in the NRL at launching an attacking raid.
Especially when there’s space on the left with Koloamatangi, Jack Wighton and Johnston providing vastly different but equally impactful options for their maestro.
With Manly recruit Jamie Humphreys putting in another strong showing at halfback, there are green shoots for Bennett to build on as the season progresses.
5. Blaize on ice again
The Eels should be putting in a call to the Panthers to say they will happily take Blaize Talagi off their hands for a loan spell if they don’t need him.
Even with Dylan Edwards and Nathan Cleary out, Ivan Cleary opted to drop Talagi from his game-day line-up after naming him on the interchange bench.
It was an odd choice given that Talagi put in an encouraging performance in his club debut in the Round 3 loss when he came on early after Nathan Cleary’s concussion.
The Kick: Penrith’s defence nothing but putrid
It was the hallmark of their four consecutive premierships but Penrith’s defence has plummeted off a cliff
They conceded 22 in beating Cronulla in Vegas and no one raised an eye brow but then they had 38 put on them by the Roosters, 30 by the Storm and then this capitulation to Souths.
Not that defence is solely the domain for forwards but James Fisher-Harris could raise a wry smile, if he does indeed ever not scowl, that his departure in the off-season has resulted in the Panthers pack turning into pussycats.
Cleary is back for next Friday’s “home” clash at CommBank Stadium against the Cowboys but as great as he is, the Panthers will lose four on the trot if they dish up another defensive disasterclass.
