It’s heartbreaking: A very talented Penrith Panthers player has announced his sudden retirement, sending a powerful statement and bidding the team and supporters a heartfelt farewell.
Legendary Penrith Panther Sam McKendry is only now beginning to feel the pain of retirement; his body has seen a lot during his NRL career.
It would be simple to declare that the Penrith Panthers have completed their task after winning back-to-back premierships, making it to three consecutive grand finals, and topping the ladder in two of the previous three seasons.
For the first twenty years of the NRL, no team won two in a row for a reason. And the Roosters and Panthers, two of the best teams in the league, are the teams that have accomplished it in the last five years for a reason.
But Penrith’s dominance, which included only one loss during the regular season before the well-trained, seasoned Melbourne Storm stunned them in the 2020 grand final and then used that heartbreak to forge an iron will to win the 2021 and 2022 titles, has been as remarkable as anything we’ve seen this century on a rugby league field.
Even the top teams in the league can’t match them when they’re playing at their best.
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The Panthers’ performance against the Eels to win consecutive games was nothing short of a clinic, but one play in particular summed up Penrith’s outstanding night.
Dylan Edwards takes on
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Based solely on their six away losses during their premiership seasons, Parramatta’s two victories this year came against teams that were nearly close to playing at full strength. The remaining players were from Panthers teams that were unrecognizable due to either star resting late in the season or state of origin duty.
Pundits celebrated Melbourne’s 16-0 victory over the Panthers in round 20 of this season, not only as evidence that gods can bleed but also as a return to form for one of the few teams to defeat the Panthers since the coronavirus pandemic began.
Teams were being commended for even coming close, regardless of the absence of Nathan Cleary, Jarome Luai, James Fisher-Harris, Dylan Edwards, and Taylan May. It was like playing against Michael Jordan in the championship game or facing Muhammad Ali in his prime. Anything to give the impression that the race for the premiership is more than just a one-horse race.
