The three reasons behind Penrith’s unstoppable start to 2026

For all of the successful Penrith have finished in recent times, they’ve by no means gained like this, with such terror and surprise.

By way of 5 rounds, the Panthers are the one undefeated crew within the NRL. They really feel like much less of a premiership favorite and extra like a premiership-elect as a result of they appear to date forward of everybody else; it is laborious to know which crew may stand up as a possible challenger. 

All of this has been true about numerous Penrith groups since their nice advance started, however such is the size of their dominance in 2026 that it has been completely different from all these different years.

The statistical proof is in every single place, and the numbers are astounding. It is one of the best begin to a season any crew has had in historical past. The closest any crew has come to them is 20 factors. On common, they’re scoring 38 factors a recreation and conceding simply eight.

Winger Thomas Jenkins has had 12 tries in 5 matches, probably the most of any participant by way of the primary 5 weeks of a season within the historical past of the game in Australia. If he lands a double towards Canterbury on Thursday, he’ll break the document for many consecutive braces.

He is on observe to interrupt Dave Brown’s single-season document of 38 tries, however he might need to accept merely breaking Alex Johnston’s NRL period document of 30.

Final week’s 50-10 win over Melbourne was the primary time the Storm, a byword for sustained excellence earlier than these Panthers arrived, had conceded a half-century in 23 years.

The earlier time it occurred, Craig Bellamy, who has coached over 600 NRL matches, was simply 21 video games into his tenure. Penrith handed Melbourne a humbling they have not skilled since every thing the Storm now stand for was nonetheless rising from the primordial ooze.

It capped off a collection of three video games towards final 12 months’s fellow preliminary finalists, ending with Penrith outscoring their opponents 102-16. 

Add within the 40-4 win towards the Roosters, who had been among the many premiership favourites earlier than a ball was kicked, and the Panthers have completely laid waste to the groups that had been purported to be their championship contemporaries this 12 months.

It is not precisely new to see the Panthers successful, however that is completely different. They don’t seem to be beating different groups; they’re destroying them.

There are three key causes this has develop into attainable, the primary being Penrith’s longstanding refusal to relaxation on its laurels. To them, what they’re doing remains to be not sufficient.

It is easy to roll the eyes at captain Isaah Yeo’s phrases over the weekend when he stated the membership was nonetheless chasing a full 80-minute efficiency, but it surely was removed from media-trained platitudes. The Panthers actually consider it.

“We’re looking for perfection — it is type of an phantasm, as a result of we’ll by no means get there,” centre Paul Alamoti stated.

“But when we proceed to try to get higher each day, that is all we could be answerable for and concentrate on.

“We have scored a variety of factors, however there’s little pockets of our recreation the place we do suppose we’ll get higher.

“Defensively, we leaked 20 factors two weeks in the past and 10 factors final week, and everybody needs to maintain the opposite crew to zero each week; that is the aim.”

The second cause is extra technical. Defence has lengthy been the bedrock of Penrith’s dominance, and that is stayed the identical in 2026, however there’s additionally been a better verve in assault to again it up.

It is not as if scoring factors was ever overly tough for the Panthers by way of their 4 straight premierships however solely as soon as, in 2023, did they’ve probably the most prolific assault within the league, and even then, it was simply six factors forward of the second-placed Broncos.

What’s occurred so far this season has been completely different gravy. Underneath new assault coach Ben Harden, there’s been a better growth to their play, significantly down the left edge the place Jenkins, McLean, five-eighth Blaize Talagi, and second rower Isaiah Papali’I’ve been pulling opponents aside like they’re well-smoked pork shoulder.

A part of that’s bodily — McLean and Jenkins particularly are seeing the advantages of consecutive pre-seasons with the highest squad — however for Talagi, in his second season as Nathan Cleary’s halves associate, there is a psychological facet as properly.

“We’re taking part in our personal fashion, we’re seeing issues, and we’re not afraid to take them. That is been an evolution in my recreation,” Talagi stated.

“Everyone seems to be at all times alive and able to take no matter comes on.

“It is nonetheless not excellent. I am nonetheless rising as a participant, however we have come a good distance. That is on Ivan for trusting us.”

There’s additionally a better cohesion throughout the facet than they’ve loved in a while. After years of yearly changing pillars of their premiership wins — from Api Koroisau and Viliame Kikau within the earlier days to Stephen Crichton, James Fisher-Harris and Jarome Luai in a while — Penrith welcomed again 16 of their prime 17 from final 12 months.

Moses Leota, one of many membership’s longest-serving gamers who has borne witness to their fixed reinvention, can really feel the distinction.

“Everyone seems to be assured from the pre-season we had, and we bought to stay collectively after final 12 months. There wasn’t a variety of change. That is helped us begin the 12 months properly,” Leota stated.

“We’ve the identical crew, we have not needed to work round changing somebody.”

These modifications would make Penrith nice in any time or place within the recreation’s historical past, however the closing issue behind their lightning begin is one thing past their management.

The NRL’s determination to ramp up set restarts has modified the boundaries of what is attainable within the sport, and as the remainder of the league struggles to adapt the Panthers look ready-made for the brand new world.

That, coupled with their excellence, is why the data have fallen. Beneficial situations are required if a crew goes to make a dent in historical past.

It is a sample that is repeated itself again and again. Manly and Canberra share the document for fewest losses in a season longer than 20 video games, and so they each set it in the identical season — 1995, when 4 new growth golf equipment had been added to the league and the expertise pool could not take it because the Sea Eagles and Raiders surged to similar 20-2 data.

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Parramatta famously set the document for many factors in an everyday season with a whopping 839 in 2001 — the identical 12 months the NRL went from limitless to restricted interchange — and that season Newcastle additionally broke the earlier document regardless of scoring greater than 50 fewer factors than the Eels.

The one critical challengers to these totals got here 20 years later, which doubled because the final time the NRL turned the set restart dial so far as it may go.

The Storm completed simply 24 factors shy of the 2001 Eels whereas equalling the outdated Jap Suburbs document of 19 consecutive wins. 

South Sydney completed because the fourth most prolific attacking crew of all time, whereas that 12 months’s Manly facet completed sixth on the all-time chart.

Such historic numbers really feel inside Penrith’s attain. It is no assure they will win the premiership — of all these record-breaking or record-adjacent groups talked about above, solely the 2001 Knights ended up hoisting the trophy. 

Two of them — the Storm and the Rabbitohs — fell earlier than the Panthers themselves en path to the 2021 premiership that served because the daybreak and deceleration of their new empire.

By way of 5 weeks, this season appears very similar to that one. Penrith have scored greater than 40 factors in every of the final three weeks, which for all of the successful they’ve loved since marks the primary time they’ve finished it since 2021.

However what’s modified this time round is that there is perhaps treasured little firm on the prime. In 1995 and 2001 and 2021 a number of groups had been capable of adapt to the brand new panorama — data had been damaged by some groups and challenged by others.

Not this time, at the least not to date. Proper now, Penrith stands alone.

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There’s nonetheless time for different groups to work issues out, however after this weekend, a few of them may have performed 1 / 4 of their season. 

A battling crew does not at all times have as a lot time as they suppose, and for therefore a lot of them, the outdated world is howling as the brand new one struggles to be born.

The results of that uncertainty is a nightmare with a monster on the finish of it, a Panthers crew that’s centered, clear and ravenous.

They’ve certainty in a recreation stuffed with doubt. They’re inflicting ache to the purpose of humiliation. They’ve confirmed themselves the early masters of the howling insanity and the one crew able to bending it to their will.

There’s a variety of season left. State of Origin will give them a shake, maybe like by no means earlier than, as a result of a document illustration may beckon. There aren’t any certainties the place premierships are involved. 

However we inform ourselves these items as consolation. Three straight premierships wasn’t meant to be attainable within the trendy world. Nor was 4.

Penrith broke these notions then like they’re breaking data now, and when you take them at their phrase, one of the best is but to return.

It’d take bravery to say they’re flawed, and whereas this season nonetheless has a future, proper now it is laborious to think about it belonging to anybody else.