After a two-year hiatus due to Covid and the apathy and arrogance of Australian sports administrators, the World Club Challenge is back. Back-to-back NRL Premiers Penrith Panthers will host four-in-a-row Super League untouchables Saints on Saturday (February 18, kick-off 7.50am UK time) for the right to finally take the world crown from the heads of the Sydney Roosters.
If Saints can do it (that might be the biggest ‘if’ I’ve ever written) they will secure the title for a third time. Brisbane Broncos were defeated in both 2001 by Ian Millward’s side and in 2007 by Daniel Anderson’s off the back of a domestic treble. Meanwhile the Panthers have never been crowned world champions, a poor effort when you consider that Widnes and Bradford have. Penrith’s last appearance in the title game was in 2004 when they went down 22-4 to the Bulls. Their only other appearance came in 1991 when they were defeated 21-4 by pre-Warriors, pre-salary cap Wigan. That Panthers side contained former Saints coach Royce Simmons.
Saints were the beaten finalists when the Roosters took the title that they still officially hold. They’ve also suffered defeat in the event in 1976, 2000, 2003 and 2015. All but one of those defeats came on English soil. The only other time that the red vee travelled to Australia to contest the prize (other than the always entertaining but hopelessly contrived 1997 event) was the inaugural year of 1976. On that occasion Saints went down 25-2 to Eastern Suburbs, a side so synonomous with that era of rugby league that it no longer exists as a sole entity. Like Leigh Centurions.
If the Super League champions can pull off this one it will mark only the second time that an English club has won the title in Australia. Yes, of course the only team to do it so far was ‘them’. That was in Brisbane in 1994. If that seems like a pitiful record for English clubs it is slightly mitigated by the fact that it has only been played outside of England five times before this weekend’s edition. And one of those was in New Zealand and featured another team that no longer exists in the professional game, Hunter Mariners.
This will be new head coach Paul Wellens’ first fully competitive game in charge since taking over from Kristian Woolf. Wellens won this title twice as a player and is now charged with coming up with a gameplan to help his troops slay the giant. Do giants get slayed? Every other week in Huddersfield. Anyway, Wellens’ plan will not involve Joe Batchelor who is the only one of the 17 on duty for the Super League Grand Final defeat of Leeds in September to not feature in the 22-man squad for this one. Batchelor could be seen wearing a boot (the medical kind) on the bench during Saints 30-18 warm-up win over St George-Illawarra Dragons last week. The England back rower needs further investigations on his injury and will not see action for at least a few weeks. Not helpful with the Super League campaign getting under way for Saints within days of their return to England.
Fortunately the in-form Curtis Sironen is on hand to replace Batchelor. Sironen has plenty of NRL experience and was a standout in the win over St George-Illawarra. Morgan Knowles missed that game through illness but should be back to further reinforce a pack that also includes Sione Mata’utia. Joey Lussick is another among the Saints forwards who has seen it all before when it comes to NRL opponents but it might be that he has to wait his turn for action behind the great and the ageless James Roby. Alex Walmsley missed the Grand Final but will be keen to confirm his reputation as one of the best props in either hemisphere. Matty Lees partners him with the impactful Agnatius Paasi likely to be coming off the bench with Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook.
Regan Grace is no longer around in the backs but Will Hopoate looks set to fill the void. Mark Percival is in line for his 200th Saints appearance. That’s a great milestone but you get the feeling that if it weren’t for injury the Saints centre would be nearing 300. Konrad Hurrell was a Gold Coast Titan before his Leeds days and prior to that a New Zealand Warrior. He has 116 NRL appearances under his belt and forms an exciting if not always telepathic edge partnership with Tommy Makinson. The winger has nothing to prove to an Australian audience. After all he was named the best player in international rugby league in 2018 and showed in the World Cup that he is the equal of any wide man playing anywhere.
And so to the creative department. Saints will need Jack Welsby and Lewis Dodd to have strong performances if they are going to be competitive. The trouble is that the better the pair play, the more chance there is of what might be irresistible NRL interest. If they could see to it that they both have stinkers and we still win somehow that would be lovely. Unfortunately that seems impossible. Both will need to be at their best. Having missed most of last year through ligament damage Dodd could really provide the kind of attacking spark that will be needed. He’ll also take a bit of pressure off Jonny Lomax who was not at his best last week but who is usually absolutely pivotal to Saints success.
Switching the focus to Penrith coach Ivan Cleary has selected a strong squad. For all the Aussie bluster about how this (hopefully now) annual contest is just a ‘trial’ game he won’t want to be conquered by a Super League side on home soil. His son Nathan makes the Panthers tick from halfback alongside the rather more chaotic but no less dangerous presence of Jarome Luai. The halves are just two of a whole clutch of stars who featured in the Panthers’ NRL Grand Final win over Souths. Luai’s Samoan World Cup finalist team-mates Stephen Crichton, Brian To’o, Spencer Leniu and Izack Tago are all on deck. Australia’s Isaah Yeo and Fiji’s super talented Sunia Turuva add further quality to a formidable side.
Dylan Walker was the player of the match in the Grand Final but has a minor injury and will not be risked. Second row Liam Martin is also out with a shoulder while hooker Api Koroisau and his fearsome Fijiian compatriot back rower Viliame Kikau have moved on to Wests Tigers and Canterbury Bulldogs respectively. The latter will be replaced by Luke Garner who has arrived from the Tigers with Mitch Kenny expected to start in the hooking role.
So, can Saints do it? Yes. Will they? Probably not. There has been much talk about the searing heat currently bathing Penrith but as Wellens has already pointed out we don’t live in igloos in the UK and we have experienced heat before, especially since the sport switched to summer. The only remnants from the winter era seem to be Baz and Tez and I’m keeping everything crossed on that one. Saints biggest problem here is not the heat but the quality of the opposition. They are a different level to the scratch side that St George-Illawarra cobbled together last week. Winning is probably beyond our wildest dreams but it is important not only for us but for the game in the UK and France that we give a good account of ourselves.
Which for me would be getting within two scores.
Squads;
Saints:
1. Jack Welsby, 2. Tommy Makinson, 3. Will Hopoate, 4. Mark Percival, 5. Jon Bennison, 6. Jonny Lomax, 7. Lewis Dodd, 8. Alex Walmsley, 9. James Roby, 10. Matty Lees, 11. Sione Mata’utia, 13. Morgan Knowles, 14. Joey Lussick, 15. Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook, 16. Curtis Sironen, 17. Agnatius Paasi, 18. Jake Wingfield, 19. James Bell, 20. Dan Norman, 21. Ben Davies, 23. Konrad Hurrell, 25. Tee Ritson
Panthers;
Stephen Crichton; Taylan May, Izack Tago, Sunia Turuva, Brian To’o; Jarome Luai, Nathan Cleary; Moses Leota, Mitch Kenny, James Fisher-Harris, Luke Garner, Zac Hosking, Isaah Yeo. Subs: Jake Cogger, Matthew Eisenhuth, Spencer Leniu, Jaemon Salmon.
Referee: Ashley Klein
oh yea of little faith.😉
ReplyDelete