The Warriors are staring down the barrel of a massive NRL finals clash with the four-time defending premiers tomorrow evening, and former coach Tony Kemp reckons they’ve got their work cut out for them - big time.
2025 has been an off-year by the Penrith Panthers’ absurdly high standards, but their form in the backend of the season coupled with their championship pedigree is enough to think they can go on yet another finals run.
Particularly if their first stop in that journey is against a Warriors side struggling for form at the moment.
“They've been a resolute team for years. They've been built on defence, and so it's an arm wrestle, and with that in mind, if you're going to do that, then you've got to pick your best defensive side,” Kempy told the DSPN podcast.
“They [the Panthers] are going to challenge you one in the middle of the park, because they're going to get Nathan [Cleary] going on the front foot and then Nathan is going to pick you apart on those edges. He's going to continually go to the same spot until you make an error.
“Are you willing to run 60 metres back and then bring the ball back into them, when they're jamming you up? This is what they're really good at. They're saying, okay, let's just jab each other and see who's going to break first. And of course, they're the premiers and they've been doing it for the last four years.
“When you're looking at it from a football perspective, and you ask me have they got a chance to winning the game… the answer is no. So you pretty much need Penrith to be a couple of percentages off their best.”
The two sides met back in round 16, which saw Penrith win 28-18 in Auckland. While the visitors fielded a B team that night, the Warriors themselves were missing some key players.
But track back a bit further, and a heavily rotated Wahs side beat the Panthers at Magic Round in 2024. It’s not as if taking down the Mountain Men is an impossible hill to climb.
So, how do the Warriors do it? Treat the occasion with the respect it deserves, according to the former coach Kempy.
“It's your grand final, and that's the way that they have to approach it. They've fought all year to be in that position, and you get the premiers at home… like if I was a player, you'd relish the challenge, wouldn't you? It's your benchmark game. Are we good enough to win the grand final, because if we can beat Penrith, can you imagine what the Warriors are feeling like going into the next game?”
When it comes to the other three games this weekend, Kempy likes the look of the Melbourne Storm, Cronulla Sharks and Canberra Raiders to win.
For the Grand Final, he’s going with a repeat of last year’s and the 2020 decider, with the Panthers finding their way into the big dance from outside the top four, and meeting the Storm.
“I would never pick anyone outside the four, but it’s just looking like [they can go all the way].
“They’re limping into the finals, the good teams. Penrith ain’t. They’ve got the good side of the draw.”
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