The 2016 Penrith Panthers season was the 50th in the club's history. Coached by Anthony Griffin and captained by Matt Moylan,[3] the Panthers competed in the NRL's 2016 Telstra Premiership. They also competed in the 2016 NRL Auckland Nines pre-season tournament.
The Panthers started their season with a string of close results, but failed to win consecutive games during the competition's opening two months. Over the course of the year, new coach Anthony Griffin redefined who was already well established within the team,[4][5] and experienced playmakers Jamie Soward and James Segeyaro would later be released from their contracts mid-season. The Panthers finished the regular season with seven wins from their final eight games, securing 6th position and a place in the finals series.[6]
The Panthers' 2016 jersey, made by ASICS, was designed to commemorate the club's 50th season. The names of all those who have played 50 or more games for the club adorn the front of the jersey, while the back of the jersey features all five of the Panthers logos, past and present. Unlike the black and teal colour combination used in previous seasons, the Panthers adopted a black and golden brown colour scheme in 2016. The home jersey is black with golden brown panels and the away jersey is the inverse. OAK Milk again featured as the major sponsor, with Hertz once more on the sleeve.[7]
On three occasions during the season, the Panthers wore unique heritage jerseys to celebrate the club's history. The celebratory jerseys were based on jersey designs from previous seasons, but were remade in the style of the current jerseys. The 1967 heritage jersey, worn against the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in round 2, was based on the club's 'Chocolate Soldiers' jersey from their inaugural 1967 season.[8] The 1991 heritage jersey, worn against the Canberra Raiders in round 9, was based on the jersey worn during the club's premiership winning 1991 season.[9] Likewise, the 2003 heritage jersey, worn against the Sydney Roosters in round 22, was based on the jersey worn during the club's premiership winning 2003 season.[10] Listed on each of the jerseys is the names of all those who played for the club in that respective season.
1967 heritage jersey
1991 heritage jersey
2003 heritage jersey
Squad
Penrith Panthers
| 2016 NRL Team |
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Coaching staff |
- Sitaleki Akauola – SR, WG
- Waqa Blake – CE, WG
- Reagan Campbell-Gillard – PR
- Bryce Cartwright – SR, FE
- Nathan Cleary – HB
- Dylan Edwards – WG, CE, FB, FE
- James Fisher-Harris – SR, LK, PR
- Chris Grevsmuhl – SR, LK – Gain: 20 May
- Zak Hardaker – FB, CE – Gain: 22 June
- Peta Hiku – CE, WG, FB
- Jeremy Latimore – PR
- Leilani Latu – PR
- Moses Leota – PR
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- Josh Mansour – WG
- Te Maire Martin – FE
- Suaia Matagi – PR
- Sam McKendry – PR
- Trent Merrin – LK, SR
- Matt Moylan (c) – FB
- Tyrone Peachey – LK, SR, FE, CE
- James Segeyaro – HK – Loss: 22 June
- Will Smith – FB, FE
- Jamie Soward – FE, HB – Loss: 30 June
- Elijah Taylor – LK, SR – Loss: 2 May
- Peter Wallace (vc) – HB, FE, HK
- Dallin Watene-Zelezniak – WG, FB
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Head coach
Assistant coaches
- Legend:
- (c) Captain(s)
- (vc) Vice-captain(s)
Updated: 22 August 2016 Source(s): Panthers Squad 2016 |
Player transfers
A † denotes that the transfer occurred during the 2016 season.
Fixtures
Auckland Nines
Penrith Panthers
| 2016 Auckland Nines Squad |
Did not play |
Coaching staff |
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Head coach
- Legend:
- (c) Captain(s)
- (vc) Vice-captain(s)
Updated: Source(s): [33] |
Source:
| Date |
Round |
Opponent |
Venue |
Score |
Tries |
Goals |
Attendance |
| Saturday, 6 February | Game 4 | Wests Tigers |
Eden Park | 23–7 | Blake (3), Mansour, Watene-Zelezniak | Cartwright (1/2), Harawira-Naera (0/1), Martin (1/1), W Smith (0/1) | 37,000 |
| Saturday, 6 February | Game 11 | Newcastle Knights |
Eden Park | 14–15 | Dockar-Clay, R Jennings, Latimore | Harawira-Naera (0/1), Martin (0/1), W Smith (1/1) | 37,000 |
| Sunday, 7 February | Game 20 | North Queensland Cowboys | Eden Park | 11–15 | Cartwright, Garcia | Cartwright (0/1), Martin (1/1) | 37,000 |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw Bye |
Pre-season
| Date |
Round |
Opponent |
Venue |
Score |
Tries |
Goals |
| Saturday, 13 February | Trial 1 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Pepper Stadium | 24–20 | Hall, Martin, C Smith, Taylor, Watene-Zelezniak | Moylan (2/2), Harawira-Naera (0/1), Dockar-Clay (0/1), Cleary (0/1) |
| Saturday, 20 February | Trial 2 | Parramatta Eels | Pepper Stadium | 8–22 | Blake, Mansour | Soward (0/2) |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw Bye |
Regular season
| Date |
Round |
Opponent |
Venue |
Score |
Tries |
Goals |
Attendance |
| Saturday, 5 March | Round 1 | Canberra Raiders | GIO Stadium | 30–22 | Hiku, Mansour, Merrin | Soward (5/5) | 11,297 |
| Thursday, 10 March | Round 2 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Pepper Stadium | 16–18 | Hiku, McKendry | Soward (4/4) | 11,125 |
| Saturday, 19 March | Round 3 | Brisbane Broncos | Pepper Stadium | 23–22 | Cartwright, Hiku, Latimore, Martin | Soward (3/5), Martin (1 FG) | 12,086 |
| Sunday, 27 March | Round 4 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | WIN Stadium | 14–12 | Hiku, Mansour | Soward (2/3) | 12,983 |
| Sunday, 3 April | Round 5 | Parramatta Eels | Pirtek Stadium | 18–20 | Cartwright (2), Mansour, Wallace | Soward (2/4) | 15,600 |
| Saturday, 9 April | Round 6 | North Queensland Cowboys | Pepper Stadium | 18–23 | Merrin, Watene-Zelezniak (2) | Soward (3/4) | 13,725 |
| Monday, 18 April | Round 7 | Sydney Roosters | Allianz Stadium | 16–20 | Blake, Martin, Watene-Zelezniak | Soward (4/4) | 10,117 |
| Sunday, 24 April | Round 8 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Southern Cross Group Stadium | 20–18 | Fisher-Harris (2), Moylan, Yeo | Soward (1/3), Moylan (0/1) | 14,273 |
| Saturday, 30 April | Round 9 | Canberra Raiders | Carrington Park | 19–18 | Cartwright, Hiku, Peachey | Soward (3/4), Wallace (1 FG) | 6,721 |
| Saturday, 14 May | Round 10 | New Zealand Warriors | AMI Stadium | 30–18 | Peachey (3), Soward, Watene-Zelezniak | Soward (5/6) | 18,000 |
| Sunday, 22 May | Round 11 | Gold Coast Titans | Pepper Stadium | 24–28 | Latu, Mansour, Peachey, Watene-Zelezniak | Soward (4/5) | 11,210 |
| Round 12 | Bye | | | | | |
| Saturday, 4 June | Round 13 | Melbourne Storm | AAMI Park | 24–6 | Mansour | Soward (1/1) | 11,116 |
| Sunday, 12 June | Round 14 | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | Brookvale Oval | 24–31 | Cleary, Latu, Mansour, Peachey, Wallace, Watene-Zelezniak |
Moylan (0/2, 1 FG), Wallace (3/4) | 12,463 |
| Round 15 | Bye | | | | | |
| Friday, 24 June | Round 16 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Pepper Stadium | 28–26 | Cleary, Grevsmuhl, Latu, Mansour, Watene-Zelezniak | Cleary (4/5) | 13,080 |
| Saturday, 2 July | Round 17 | Wests Tigers | ANZ Stadium | 34–26 | Fisher-Harris, Mansour, Merrin, Yeo | Cleary (5/5) | 10,582 |
| Sunday, 10 July | Round 18 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Pepper Stadium | 10–26 | Latu, Yeo | Cleary (1/3) | 12,682 |
| Saturday, 16 July | Round 19 | Parramatta Eels | Pepper Stadium | 22–18 | Campbell-Gillard, Cartwright, Mansour, Peachey | Cleary (3/4) | 15,251 |
| Friday, 22 July | Round 20 | Brisbane Broncos | Suncorp Stadium | 12–31 | Blake, Fisher-Harris, Hardaker, Merrin, Moylan | Cleary (5/6), Moylan (1 FG) | 30,878 |
| Saturday, 30 July | Round 21 | New Zealand Warriors | Mount Smart Stadium | 20–16 | Mansour (2), Peachey | Cleary (2/4) | 13,026 |
| Monday, 8 August | Round 22 | Sydney Roosters | Pepper Stadium | 38–18 | Blake, Cartwright, Cleary, Grevsmuhl, Peachey (2), Yeo | Cleary (5/7) | 9,653 |
| Sunday, 14 August | Round 23 | Newcastle Knights | Hunter Stadium | 6–42 | Blake, Mansour (2), Moylan, Peachey, Watene-Zelezniak (2) | Cleary (7/8) | 13,771 |
| Friday, 19 August | Round 24 | Wests Tigers | Pepper Stadium | 40–10 | Blake, Campbell-Gillard, Cartwright, Fisher-Harris, Merrin, Wallace, Yeo | Cleary (6/7) | 14,876 |
| Saturday, 27 August | Round 25 | Gold Coast Titans | Cbus Super Stadium | 14–15 | Blake, Moylan | Cleary (3/3), Moylan (1 FG) | 18,288 |
| Sunday, 4 September | Round 26 | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | Pepper Stadium | 36–6 | Blake, Cartwright, Mansour (2), Wallace, Watene-Zelezniak | Cleary (6/6) | 15,411 |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw Bye |
Representative
International
1 – Selected as 18th Man, Cartwright did not play during the series.
2 – Hiku was initially selected to play but was ruled out by injury.
3 – Blake did not play in the match, despite being named in the original squad.
4 – Fisher-Harris was called up to replace injured Simon Mannering.
References
- "Panthers appoint Payne CEO". penrithpanthers.com.au. 15 April 2016.
- Nicolussi, Christian (16 August 2016). "Corey Payne has resigned as the CEO of the Penrith Panthers". The Daily Telegraph.
- Proszenko, Adrian; Encarnacion, Matt (27 January 2016). "Matt Moylan named as Penrith Panthers captain for 2016". Sydney Morning Herald.
- Walsh, Dan (8 June 2016). "Anthony Griffin axes 622 games worth of big name NRL talent at Penrith in 2016". Fox Sports.
- Nicolussi, Christian (8 June 2016). "Jamie Soward not getting down over Penrith's selection bombshell". Herald Sun. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
- "Magic Moylan leads Panthers over Manly". ESPN. 4 September 2016.
- "2016 Home Jersey Revealed". penrithpanthers.com.au. 14 November 2015. Archived from the original on 13 September 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
- "Panthers launch 1967 Jersey". penrithpanthers.com.au. 25 February 2016.
- "1991 Commemorative Jersey Revealed". penrithpanthers.com.au. 27 April 2016. Archived from the original on 13 September 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
- "2003 Commemorative Jersey Revealed". penrithpanthers.com.au. 8 July 2016. Archived from the original on 13 September 2016. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
- "Panthers sign Quartet of Young Guns". penrithpanthers.com.au. 10 June 2015.
- "Panthers secure Chris Grevsmuhl". penrithpanthers.com.au. 20 May 2016.
- Webster, Andrew (8 September 2015). "Penrith Panthers boss Phil Gould poaches Josh Hall from Gold Coast Suns". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
- "Leeds Rhinos: Zak Hardaker joins Penrith in swap deal for James Segeyaro". BBC. 22 June 2016.
- "Two NRL Clubs Chasing Hardaker". Triple M. 7 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
The reigning Super League 'Man of Steel' is on loan deal with the Panthers after being granted his wish to play in the NRL but remains contracted to the Rhinos to the end of 2019.
- "Panthers swoop for Hiku". penrithpanthers.com.au. 9 December 2015.
- "Panthers sign Junior Kiwi". penrithpanthers.com.au. 13 July 2015.
- "Matagi joins the Panthers". penrithpanthers.com.au. 4 November 2015.
- Ritchie, Dean (2 March 2015). "Trent Merrin signs with Penrith Panthers, but won't harm Dragons focus in 2015". The Daily Telegraph.
- "Lewis Brown to join Manly". penrithpanthers.com.au. 20 June 2015.
- Ryan, Nathan (22 October 2015). "Penrith forward Adam Docker: From Test fringe to retirement at 24". Fox Sports.
- "Easts Tigers welcome Foster". QRL.com.au. 26 October 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
- Reynolds, Ben (23 June 2016). "Catalans Dragons re-sign Ben Garcia from Penrith Panthers". Sky Sports.
- "Official Statement: Apisai Koroisau". penrithpanthers.com.au. 2 July 2015.
- "Manu signs Super League deal". penrithpanthers.com.au. 13 August 2015.
- "Parramatta sign Cameron King and Kieran Moss on one-year deals for 2016". Daily Telegraph. 13 August 2015.
- Brady, Jack (22 August 2015). "Family comes first as Plum retires". NRL.com.
- "Panthers Flyer Calls It Quits". Triple M. 31 August 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
- "Panthers release Chris Smith". penrithpanthers.com.au. 6 April 2016.
- Chammas, Michael (30 June 2016). "Penrith Panthers release Jamie Soward to play in second tier for London Broncos". Sydney Morning Herald.
- "Elijah Taylor joins Wests Tigers". weststigers.com.au. 2 May 2016.
- Kennedy, Chris (5 February 2016). "Surprise call-up sends Panthers' Matagi home". NRL.com.
- "Panthers name Auckland Nines squad". NRL.com. 22 January 2016.
- "Georgallis Joins Panthers". Triple M. 30 October 2015.
- "Cook Islands, Lebanon squads named". NRL.com. 6 May 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
- "Sport: Cook Islands criticise NRL clubs after Lebanon win". Radio New Zealand. 9 May 2016. Retrieved 30 September 2016.