1st Qualifying Final
Penrith Panthers v Manly Sea Eagles
Saturday, September 12, 3:10pm, ANZ Stadium – LIVE on Fox Sports 1
Penrith Panthers
1. Brent Naden 2. Christian Crichton 3. Corey Harawira-Naera 4. Maliko Filino 5. Dylan Edwards 6. Jarome Luai 7. Nathan Cleary 8. Oliver Clark 9. Soni Luke 10. Moses Leota 11. James Fisher-Harris 12. Reed Izzard 13. Tyrone May. Interchange: 14. Cowen Epere 15. Thompson Tuigamala 16. Paea Pua 17. Kade Ellis. Coach: Cameron Ciraldo.
Manly Sea Eagles
1. Tom Trbojevic 2. Jesse Bogle 3. Addison Demetriou 4. Jesse Ramien 5. Mitch Thomas 6. Will Pearsall 7. Nicho Hynes 8. Liam Knight 9. Hugh Pratt 10. Nick Hynes 11. James Parker 12. Billy Bainbridge 13. Darcy Cox. Interchange: 14. Riley Travers 15. Luke Garner 16. Dallas Koen 17. Jyi Seymour. Coach: David Heath.
Penrith took out the minor premiership on Saturday night, thanks in part to the Titans upsetting the Cowboys in Townsville.
A remarkable feat considering they have used 37 players this season, the third most of any team, which is a credit to the coaching of Cameron Ciraldo.
On top of the ladder for the majority of 2015, the Panthers are deserving minor premiers and head into the finals series gunning for their second premiership in three years.
Manly have steam rolled in the finals on the back of five straight wins and the form of their big guns Tom Trbojevic, Addison Demetriou and Liam Knight.
The Sea Eagles finished the regular season the way it started, with a five game winning streak.
Playing in their first finals series since 2010, Manly will be looking for their first finals win, having lost all three of their post-season matches.
Ins and Outs
Penrith’s leading pointscorer Dylan Edwards moves onto the wing in place of Fuiamanu Enese, while Jarome Luai starts at five-eighth after serving a one-game suspension.
Reinforcements arrive in the forwards for Blue Mountain men, as Junior Kiwi James Fisher-Harris and Paea Pua return to the 17.
The major inclusion for Manly is fullback Tom Trbojevic, who played first grade last weekend. Nicho Hynes moves back to halfback to accommodate him and Riley Travers slots onto the bench.
Hugh Pratt returns at hooker after playing New South Wales Cup last round.
2015 Head to Head
Round 6 – Penrith 36 – 16 Manly at Pepper Stadium
Round 10 – Penrith 42 – 16 Manly at St Marys Stadium
Keep An Eye On
Moses Leota (Penrith)
A St Marys junior, Leota has been one of Penrith’s most consistent players in 2015. With seven tries in 20 games this season, Leota has run for an average of 193 metres and scored two tries in the Panthers’ last two games. He and Oliver Clark have formed quite a formidable starting front row partnership.
Addison Demetriou (Manly)
The prop-turned-centre has been a revelation since joining the Sea Eagles in 2015. Jokingly dubbed ‘Mal Meninga’ by Geoff Toovey during the week, Demetriou has been especially dangerous in Manly’s run to the finals. He ran or 301 metres and scored two tries in his side’s win over Cronulla last weekend.
18TH MAN 