Whether it was state versus state or country versus country, the Panthers family dominated last weekend's representative showcases.
NSW featured eight members of the 2021 premiership winning Penrith side that thrashed Queensland.
Their captain Nathan Cleary was a deserved Man of the Match, with plenty of points and taking full control of the game.
But the most exciting part was debutante Matt Burton.
I had the pleasure of coaching Matt as he came through the Panthers system and he showed the Rugby League world his class with four key moments:
- The classy pick up to score off the Cleary kick;
- The catch and pass to To'o to score in the corner;
- The strip off Dane Gagai to allow Cleary to score; and of course,
- The towering bombs which were just simply huge in every respect.
If he stays fit, I predict he will be in the Australian backline for the World Cup in England at the end of the year
In last week's column I said Api Koroisau was needed to give Cleary the room and time to control the game.
Thankfully, Fittler put Nathan and Api together for the first 30 minutes which gave the star halfback the ability to get into the game and then control it.
It isn't about having the best players in a team, it is also about having the best combinations.
On the world stage, Samoa thrashed the Cook Islands 42-12, with Panthers young guns Taylan May and Izack Tago both scoring, and Charlie Staines was classy at fullback.
Papau New Guinea then stunned a star-studded Fiji side to win 24-14, despite Panthers reserve grader Sunia Turuva playing his heart out for the losing team.
We should all be proud of our local team doing so well on these big stages.
The continual talk about an 18th League Franchise has centred around another Brisbane team or Gosford but last weekend has shown we should be looking further afield than the East Coast.
With a 60,000 sell out on Sunday night, the Perth Bears have to be a chance.
It is a big city with a suitable TV time zone and great stadiums.
But with every NRL Team filled with stars from across the Pacific doing amazing things, imagine a Pacific Islanders team playing out of Suva or even Auckland.
It could only be good for footy and they would be my second favourite team.
There are some big games this weekend as we return to Club footy.
My tips for this week are: Storm, Knights, Panthers, Sharks, Cowboys, Eels, Warriors, Dragons.
This week's matches are:
Thursday:
- Sea Eagles vs Storm
Friday:
- Knights vs Titans
- Panthers vs Roosters
Saturday:
- Bulldogs vs Sharks
- Cowboys vs Broncos
- Rabbitohs vs Eels
Sunday:
- Warriors vs Tigers
- Dragons vs Raiders
