CaptainCourageous The never-say-die attitude of skipper Kevin Kingston p.4

Luke PriddisErin MolanCelebrity Tipsters

INSIDE

+ PANTHERS V RAIDERS+ JUNIOR LEAGUE+ LOWER GRADES+ PANTHERS FLASHBACK

FRI 4 APR 2014 • Issue 005 PROUDLY INDEPENDENTPrinted on 100% recycled paper

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PENRITH PANTHERS1 Matt Moylan2 Dallin Watene-Zelezniak3 Dean Whare4 Jamal Idris5 Josh Mansour6 Jamie Soward7 Peter Wallace (c)8 Tim Grant9 Kevin Kingston (c)10 Sam McKendry11 Sika Manu12 Elijah Taylor13 Adam Docker14 James Segeyaro15 Jeremy Latimore16 Nigel Plum17 Lewis Brown

CANBERRA RAIDERS1 Anthony Milford2 Reece Robinson3 Jarrod Croker4 Matt Allwood5 Bill Tupou6 Jack Wighton7 Terry Campese (c)8 David Shillington9 Glen Buttriss10 Brett White11 Jarrad Kennedy12 Joel Edwards13 Shaun Fensom14 Josh McCrone15 Paul Vaughan16 Dane Tilse17 Shannon Boyd

PREVIEW

P enrith Panthers coach Ivan Cleary has made significant changes to the side that got beaten by Parramatta last weekend – and it

is a team line-up to be excited about.After being clearly out-enthused and

out-played by the Eels last weekend, Cleary has returned to what has been a proven formula up front – Tim Grant and Sam McKendry starting in the front row, with Nigel Plum and Jeremy Latimore back to the interchange bench.

The move is almost certainly designed

Cleary makes big changesDallin Watene-Zelezniak will make his first grade debut for the Penrith Panthers this weekend. Photo: Melinda Jane

to give the Panthers some much-needed grunt early in the game, and lay the plat-form for later in the contest when James Segeyaro comes off the bench to add some spark in the latter part of the first half.

Grant’s inclusion as the starting front rower is amazing given he was dropped to the NSW Cup last weekend. His future has been under a huge cloud of late, too, so it’s a big piece of positive news to see him back in the side.

Josh Mansour returns from injury, which will give the side plenty of power out wide, while Dallin Watene-Zelezniak replaces the injured David Simmons on the other wing. While Simmons offers composure and a great leap, Watene-Zelezniak is a speedster and fans who’ve watched him star in the lower grades would be excited about his first grade debut against the Raiders.

The biggest news however is the return of Peter Wallace in the number seven jumper. For just the second time this season, Wallace and Jamie Soward will partner together in the halves – it’s what Cleary wants and needs, even though Isaac John is an admirable replacement when needed.

Canberra were impressive against South Sydney last weekend but had the Rabbitohs been totally on their game and not dropped so much ball in the first half, the scoreline may have looked very different. In fact, had Nathan Merritt not dropped the ball while attempting to score a try that would have brought Souths back within six points, the entire result may have been different.

The Raiders can certainly play powerful footy on their day, but on paper, Penrith have them covered this weekend.

“The Raiders have a lot of strike power with Milford at the back and their centres,” said Panthers centre Dean Whare.

“We’ve got to try and stop their forwards first before they give the opportunity to their outside backs to do some work. I remember the game we played against the Raiders last year, we wanted to win more than they did. Hopefully it’s a hot day on Saturday and we can get the joy there.”

The Panthers have won both their matches at home this season and accord-ing to co-captain Kevin Kingston, are keen to continue that good form.

“We talked about it all pre-season, play-ing well in front of our home fans,” he said.

“I think Canberra’s forward pack is really strong. Their outside backs are getting a lot of praise at the moment but their forwards have been the most impressive of the league.”

Kingston is wrong there, perhaps due to modesty. Penrith’s pack is stronger than that of Canberra and if every player is on their game, the Raiders won’t stand a chance when it comes to the forward battle.

When Matthew Elliott was coaching Penrith, one of the big criticisms was his lack of response to losses.

Very rarely did players get dropped for poor form; which meant very rarely were they held accountable for the results being experienced on the field.

Under the Ivan Cleary regime, nobody is safe. That’s been proven time and time again.

Whilst it can rock the boat sometimes, it also ensures a team that is competitive, switched on and aware of the challenge ahead of them.

After last week’s slip-up, I’m confident the Panthers have what it takes to record their third win of the season this weekend.

Tip: Panthers by 24

TROY DODDS @troydodds

Penrith Panthers v Canberra Raiders

Refs: Adam Devcich andChris James

Kick off: Sat 5/4 • 5.30pmSportingbet Stadium

TV: Fox Sports Live 5.30pmRadio: 2GB Live 5.30pm

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NATHAN TAYLOR @natetaylor87

Enjoying the lifeline handed to him by the Panthers last year, Kevin Kingston believes there is every chance something special is unfolding at Penrith this season

FEATURE STORY

“We’re capable of anything”A fter being told a year ago to find

a new club, Penrith Panthers co-captain Kevin Kingston wakes up every morning pinch-

ing himself that he is part of a journey that could, in the near future, become something very special.

With his NRL career on the line last season, Kingston showed professionalism both on and off the field, ultimately giving Panthers management no choice but to sign the experienced hooker for one final hurrah.

“It’s amazing,” he admitted to Extra Time last week.

“I feel totally privileged and lucky to be in this team because I look around and it’s a squad that is capable of anything. I’m looking forward to riding this wave.”

Kingston first arrived at the Panthers in 2010 from a Parramatta side that shocked the league the year prior, making it all the way to Grand Final Sunday.

Kingston’s first year with Penrith was a good one. The club surprised all and finished the regular season in second place.

Kingston believes that 2010 squad, which saw former players Michael Jennings, Luke Lewis, Lachlan Coote, Luke Walsh, Michael Gordon and Frank Pritchard have

breakout seasons, reminds him of the squad he runs out with today.

“This group does remind me of 2010,” he said.

“Hopefully this time we can be a bit more consistent and be strong, not just for this year, but for many years to come.

“I think in 2010 we probably didn’t have great depth but we do this year.”

For the three seasons following their second-place finish, the Panthers were one of the big disappointments in the NRL. Their star players weren’t firing and their coach was fired, which in turn sent the club through a much talked about rebuilding phase.

This year the Panthers are firing, so far, and the ‘newish’ coach finally has the team he’s wanted all along, which makes the co-captain pretty happy too.

“I think we have a good blend of every-thing this year. We have a more talented squad which has a lot of experience,” Kingston said.

“Peter Wallace, Jamie Soward and Brent Kite are great leaders of this team, and for a future leader you’ve got someone like Elijah Taylor who talks very well on the field but probably leads more by his actions. He has earned my respect and I like playing with guys like that.”

Kingston’s future beyond this season is uncertain but with James Segeyaro want-ing the number nine jumper, it’s unlikely he will be at Penrith in 2015.

Kevin Kingston. Photo: Melinda Jane

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NATHAN TAYLOR @natetaylor87

He’s a local junior who wears his heart on his sleeve, and now there’s rumours that Tim Grant may not have a future at the Penrith Panthers

FEATURE STORY

Players rally behind GrantT eammates of Tim Grant have

labelled the former State of Origin prop a “massive part of the club” and a “future leader” on the

back of speculation earlier this week that he was the next high profile Panther to be shown the door.

Intense speculation last Sunday suggested that Grant, a local Penrith junior and a fan favourite, was set to be released by the Panthers to join the South Sydney Rabbitohs immediately.

The rumours of Grant’s impending move were intensified over the weekend after he was sensationally dropped to the NSW Cup for the first time in his career.

Panthers boss Phil Gould issued a state-ment on Monday morning to cool off speculation about the future of his star forward.

“It is my hope and I’m sure Tim’s hope, that he gets to play many more years with the Panthers, and that would be the best result for all concerned,” he said.

During a Monday afternoon media session, Grant’s teammates including Panthers captain Kevin Kingston spoke about what the St Marys junior means to the club.

“I’ve played with Timmy for many years and I love having him around. He’s a very

popular guy in the group and I’m glad he’s sticking around,” Kingston said.

“If he left it would leave a massive gap because he is such a good leader, he works so hard and is a great example for young kids.”

Former Warrior Elijah Taylor, who joined the club in the off-season, said Grant would be a massive loss.

“Tim’s an Origin player and a massive leader both on and off the field, and a lot of the boys respect him, especially the young boys that come through,” he said.

“Tim brings an aura onto the field and you know he means business. He plays with his heart on his sleeve every week and would be a massive loss for us if some-thing did happen.”

Tim Grant is not leaving Penrith, off icials say. Photo: Melinda Jane

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MOMENT WITH MOLAN

I t’ll be a throwback to the early ‘90s this Saturday evening when the Penrith Panthers and my team, the Canberra Raiders, do battle in the

NRL’s Heritage Round.I’ll get to the game a little later but first

I want to talk about Panthers prop Tim Grant and the great news earlier in the week that he would be staying at Penrith despite reports suggesting otherwise.

I went to Tim’s house and did a story with him and his partner Chloe about a month ago and had a really long chat about his goals for this year and what went wrong for him last year.

Tim basically said that with a lot of Penrith’s big name players like Luke Lewis and Michael Jennings departing the club in recent years, he was left to shoulder all the media interest and attention on his own.

I know as a Channel Nine journalist whenever we went to Panthers last year, he was the only player that was really of any interest to us in terms of having a big enough profile and was someone that our bosses deemed worthy of interviewing.

Everyone always wanted to speak to Tim and he admitted that was hard to deal with. He said he struggled with his form on the field and he struggled to shoulder

that burden off the field. Tim admitted to me that he’s worked very hard on handling that attention and that he’s in a really good place this year. He said he had very frank chats with coach Ivan Cleary and the club said to him that they didn’t want him to play that public role this year because

there were guys like Jamal Idris and Kevin Kingston that can do all the media stuff and that he should focus on what he does best on the field.

Tim was really determined that this was his year to turn it around. He wants to play Origin, he wants to play for the Kangaroos.

Tim’s come back from many things during his long career and I have no doubt that this will be a big year for him.

The club’s support of Tim on Monday will not only do a lot for his confidence but it’s a great thing for the club because you need players that represent what Penrith is about and Tim is a true Penrith son.

It’ll be great to see Tim back out on the park this weekend against a Raiders side that will go into this game with a lot of confidence after beating South Sydney.

There’s plenty of history between these two clubs and a lot of people will remem-ber when both sides were in their ‘heyday’ close to 25 years ago.

Lastly, thanks to everyone voting for ‘The Footy Show’ after we were nomi-nated for another Logie Award this year. We love our viewers and thank you for all the support over the past 21 years.

Don’t miss ‘The Footy Show’ every Thursday night at 8.30pm on Channel Nine.

Grant focused on turning form around

Tim Grant in action for the Panthers

ERIN MOLAN @Erin_Molan

Don’t miss Erin Molan and the rest of the team on ‘The Footy Show’ every Thursday night at 8.30pm

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I had the pleasure of being involved with a young Alex McKinnon during my playing days at the Dragons and every word that has been mentioned

about his great nature I would like to echo. There will always be freak accidents in

any sport regardless of its nature and this is one of those occasions.

Like all involved in the game I wish Alex and his family strength in what lies ahead.

Penrith is one club that has shown how it is done with club legend John Farragher receiving continued support from the club while continuing to give back to the game he loves.

I hope Alex is fortunate enough to receive the same support from the NRL.

What all young players should take away from this episode along with the retire-ment of Brisbane’s Jharal Yow Yeh the other week is that a footy career can be over in one split second.

While the implementation of the Holden Cup has given young players greater expo-sure to the professionalism of the game, it is important to ensure they maintain a balance between playing as well as devel-oping a career away from the field.

Moving on and the Battle of the West yielded a very disappointing result with the Eels, inspired by a rejuvenated Chris

Sandow and an outstanding performance from hooker Nathan Peats, clearly domi-nating a flat Panthers outfit.

The truth of the matter was that the Panthers clearly lacked go forward and their attack suffered as a result.

This now sets up an interesting game this week with the Panthers facing a resurgent Raiders, who dominated the big forward pack of the Rabbits last weekend.

Speaking of big forwards it was intrigu-ing that prop Tim Grant was left out of

the top team last weekend. He has been recalled this weekend but you have to question whether or not Tim is in the plans of the current coaching staff.

While I would love to have Tim stay and eventually fulfil his dream of captaining this great club, for the sake of both Tim and the club, I think it’s time the board respects what he has done during his time at the club and allows Tim the opportunity to continue his career elsewhere, if that is what he wants to do.

PRIDDO'S POINT

McKinnon deserves lifelong support

Emotional scenes at Hunter Stadium last weekend in tribute to Alex McKinnon LUKE PRIDDIS

Luke Priddis says the NRL and Newcastle must continue to support Alex McKinnon after news that he may never walk again

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PANTHERRUMBLINGS

Do you want the good news or the bad news first?

After a bad weekend for the Panthers in the NRL, let’s go with the good news first and after a slow start to the season, the Panthers have made it back to back wins in the NSW Cup.

Complete with a new front-row forward by the name of Tim Grant, the Panthers were on fire last Sunday, demolishing the Wentworthville Magpies 42-22.

Fijian winger Eto Nabuli and halfback Luke Capewell rejoined the side after a lengthy period on the sidelines through injury but it was centre Wes Naiqama who led the way with one of his best games in a Panthers jersey. Naiqama scored 22 points for the Panthers including two tries, seven goals and a bag full of assists in a man of the match performance.

Now for the bad news, and the Penrith Panthers are now one of two clubs still winless after four rounds of the Holden Cup competition.

The Panthers got off to a terrible start, allowing the Eels to score three unan-swered tries before they finally posted points midway through the first half.

Despite a late comeback, led by a hat-trick to winger Joshua Jay, the Panthers were again outclassed as the Eels recorded their third win of the year 26-18.

This Saturday both sides return home to Sportingbet Stadium with Holden Cup at 1.10pm and NSW Cup at 3.15pm.

Is there more to the Tim Grant story than meets the eye? You bet there is. Let’s go through the timeline of the most recent chapter in this saga. On Friday, head trainer Ron Palmer is spotted with Grant after the club’s last training session of the week. Palmer is visibly consoling Grant – we can only presume he’d just been told he wouldn’t be playing first grade against the Eels. Saturday comes along and Grant is officially dropped from first grade. On Sunday, Grant plays for the Panthers in reserve grade and speculation mounts that he’s about to sign with South Sydney effective imme-diately. Now let me tell you this – when speculation reaches fever pitch like it did on Sunday, 99 per cent of the time it’s right. But then Phil Gould throws a span-ner into the works, releasing a statement on Monday denying that Grant is leaving. “It is my hope and I’m sure Tim’s hope, that he gets to play many more years with the Panthers, and that would be the best result for all concerned,” Gould said in the carefully worded statement. So is

that the end of the story? Don’t bet on it. I mentioned a few weeks ago that there’s a rift between Grant and coach Ivan Cleary and I believe that to still be the case. But the biggest issue here is money. Unless Grant’s agreed to take a pay cut in the last few days, the dollars associated with Grant’s contract will continue to be an issue at Panthers HQ.

Still on the Grant situation, and you have to wonder what this tweet from Daily Telegraph journalist James Phelps was implying: “Why would you tell a player to talk to other clubs and then deny him a release when he finds and accepts a deal?”

The Eels may need to sit down with whoever is in charge of their big screen graphics at Pirtek Stadium. First, the Eels listed Matthew Elliott as coach when they displayed the Panthers’ team list, then they declared Will Hopoate scored Parramatta’s first try. The try was of course scored by Willie Tonga.

A loss has always been hard to take, but it’s even harder now with social media. And I’m not just talking about your mates giving it to you for fun – the rude, inappropriate, hateful comments posted by so-called fans on Twitter and various Facebook groups is a disgrace. There’s a few fans who need to have a good, hard look at themselves.

There’s plenty of people who don’t want to see Wes Naiqama back in first grade, but I’m told he played out of his skin in the NSW Cup last weekend and is determined to find his way back into the top squad.

I am a big fan of merchandise (Mrs Masked Panther isn’t, though) and I love the new official online store over at www.penrithpanthers.com.au. Just this week I picked up a Nigel Plum fridge magnet – get yours today.

Talking of big Nigel, he celebrated his birthday during the week. Happy Birthday big fella!

Expect to see some really good Penrith Panthers involvement in ‘The Footy Show’ next Thursday night.

To finish on a serious note this week, I would like to pass on my best wishes to Alex McKinnon, his partner and family after the tragic news this week that he may never walk again. It really puts things into perspective when things like this happen.

Grant saga is far from finished

The Tim Grant saga is finally over. Photo: Melinda Jane

Send your Panthers gossip atnews@westernweekender.com.au

with the Masked Panther

Lower GRADES

NATHAN TAYLOR @natetaylor87

Wes Naiqama. Photo: Melinda Jane

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David Simmons

Best moment in the NRL: Making my fi rst grade debutWorst moment in the NRL: Any time I have been injuredFavourite team growing up: Cronulla Closest teammate: PlummySporting idol: Russell WilsonFavourite TV show: SeinfeldFavourite band or artist: HillsongUltimate holiday destination: Canada

He’s Mr Reliable! David Simmons is one of our favourites at the Panthers

Extra Time Issue Number 005

PRINTED BY Spotpress Pty Ltd / PRODUCED BY The Western Weekender

EDITOR Troy Dodds / 4722 2998 / troy.dodds@westernweekender.com.au

CONTRIBUTORS Nathan Taylor / Luke Priddis / Yvonne Purtell / Erin Molan

SALES MANAGER Simon Gould / 4722 2998 simon.gould@westernweekender.com.au

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Win Panthers tickets

O ne of the most emotional days at Penrith Stadium in the history of the Penrith Panthers didn’t come in a premiership-winning year.

In fact, it came in a season where the Panthers finished 10th at the end of the regular season.

It was Sunday, August 22, 1999. It was the day perhaps the greatest ever Panther

said goodbye to his home fans.Greg ‘Brandy’ Alexander will be remembered as

one of the greatest halfbacks the game has ever seen, and certainly the most memorable number seven in Penrith’s history.

His final home game in round 25 of 1999 was an emotional day, highlighted by an impressive 33-14 win over Canberra – an ironic opponent given Alex-ander had led the Panthers to their first premiership win over the Raiders some eight years earlier.

With Scott Sattler next to him in the five-eighth role and his future replacement Craig Gower at hooker, ‘Brandy’ was swamped by fans at full-time, all wanting to congratulate him on a wonderful career and his association with the Panthers.

“My last home game was a terrific experience,” Alexander remembers in the Men In Black book.

“The moment I started running around the oval with all the fans and my family and friends watch-ing and cheering I just lost all control. I was running around crying my eyes out and couldn’t do a thing about it.”

Alexander didn’t score any points on that day – the try scorers were Brett Atkinson, Shane Elford, Craig Gower, Chris Hicks, Andrew Hinson and Lee Hopkins, while Ryan Girdler kicked four goals and a field goal.

Probably the most disappointing thing about the day was the crowd – just 14,184 showed up to fare-well the man who meant so much to Penrith.

Two other things stand out about that day – the emotional embrace between old rivals Alexander and Laurie Daley at the end of the game, and the fact that the Panthers had ruined Canberra’s finals hopes with the win, proving that emotion plays a big, big role in the game of rugby league.

While Alexander remembers the clash against Canberra as his final match, he actually still had one

final game to play against the high flying Cronulla at Shark Park. The Panthers were thrashed 38-6 by a side boasting talent such as David Peachey, Andrew Ettingshausen, Mat Rogers and Jason Stevens.

Alexander was hurt in the final game, but received a great ovation from Cronulla fans.

Greg ‘Brandy’ Alexander played 226 matches for the Penrith Panthers.

With two rounds of the junior representative competition remaining our Harold Matthews and SG Ball teams are positioned well heading into the finals following their wins on the weekend against Western Suburbs. Next weekend they take on the teams from Newcastle, this being a double-header at St Marys Leagues Stadium following the WSAS vs Sydney Roosters games. I must also mention the great effort again last weekend by the WSAS squads with the Harold Matthews narrowly missing out on a win and the SG Ball squad coming away with a win over Manly.

Panthers and the NRL Development Officers will be running a school holiday clinic at Sportingbet Stadium on Tuesday, April 15 between 12.30pm and 3.30pm. The clinic is free and will incorpo-rate skills and drills, guest speakers covering training tips, nutri-tion and social media to name a few. The numbers are limited to 300. Registration is online and the link is on the Junior League website, Facebook and Twitter. To be eligible to register you must be an U12 registered player within the Penrith Junior League. We look forward to seeing you there.

Why do we need rules?“They are only kids… they should be enjoying themselves…

they shouldn’t be governed by rules”.Rules provide an agreement of understanding to competition.

They define what is allowed or not allowed to occur during situa-tions both on and off the field.

Rules are a vital part of sport and it would be difficult to imagine the game without them. Rules give players and participants an objective to strive for.

Junior reps doing well

“I was running around crying my eyes out and couldn’t do a thing about it”

JUNIORS

YVONNE PURTELL @penrith_juniors

PANTHERS FLASHBACK

Farewell and thank you

The crowd at Alexander’s last home game

TROY DODDS @troydodds

Next Friday’s clash between Penrith and the Rabbitohs promises to be one of the games of the year at Sporting-bet Stadium, and we want you to go along for free!

Extra Time has two double passes to give away to the

game, which will kick off at 7.30pm on Friday, April 11.

Don’t miss seeing Greg Inglis and Sam Burgess in action at the foot of the Mountains against our Panthers.

For your chance to win a double pass, SMS the code word PANTHERS to 19 19 18.

Entries close Tuesday, April 8. Authorised under NSW Permit No LTPM/14/00047.

Terms and conditions at www.westernweekender.com.au or from Weekender recep-tion.

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PANTHERS IN PICTURES

Jamal Idris in action against the Bulldogs in round three

Settling in to his new home

He was the surprise inclusion in Penrith’s 2014 squad but Jamal Idris has certainly made up for lost time.Idris is looking great in a Panthers jumper and has had a solid start to his new chapter at the foot of the Mountains

@wwpenrith

Idris runs out for his first game at Penrith Stadium

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1. Pretty in pink: Jamal Idris plays against Newtown 2. Idris at pre-season training3. Idris talking to the media after signing with Penrith 4. Idris congratulates Matt MoylanPhotos: Melinda Jane

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