Panthers rest 16 players, name six to debut against Bulldogs

These are the six players named to make their club debuts among a staggering 16 changes made by premiers Penrith to their team for Thursday night’s clash with the Bulldogs.

Brad Schneider, who did not take the field against Canberra last Friday, is the only player from the Panthers 17 in Mudgee who will play against the Dogs at Accor Stadium.

Suggestions of mass changes to the Panthers side sparked increased betting activity on Monday, with several corporate bookies bracing for a potential $100,000 payout should the Bulldogs triumph. By Tuesday afternoon, Penrith had drifted from $1.60 to around $8 in head-to-head betting.

The sight of a second-string Panthers team also prompted calls for the NRL to follow the AFL and introduce a bye round before the finals to ensure fans were not deprived of the chance to see their favourite players during the regular season.

Penrith’s Origin stars Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo, Liam Martin, Dylan Edwards and Brian To’o have been replaced by NRL debutants Zac Lipowicz, Billy Phillips, John Fonua and David Fale, while Riley Price – the son of Bulldogs and Queensland legend Steve Price – and Austin Dias make their club debuts.

The Bulldogs will only be missing Harry Hayes and Viliame Kikau.

Panthers coach Ivan Cleary was happy to commit to the wholesale changes once he knew his team could not push for a top-four berth. He will welcome his first-choice squad back next Saturday for the clash against St George Illawarra, then back them to win four straight games to secure a fifth straight premiership.

Canterbury were the last side to come from outside the top four to win the competition in 1995.

“Someone has to do it; it might as well be us,” Yeo said after the second golden-point loss against the Raiders last week.

Sources with knowledge of the early betting trends on the Panthers-Bulldogs game not authorised to speak publicly confirmed the Dogs had firmed when Penrith began withdrawing players from their NSW Cup team.

Some bookies said that as a general rule, they capped the amount punters could bet on games in the final two rounds of the NRL and AFL before at the start of the week due to the likelihood players could be rested.

One way to discourage teams from resting players is to introduce a bye round before the finals, which has worked well in the AFL. Some have called for the NRL to follow suit, including Storm chairman Matt Tripp.

The Storm have rested Xavier Coates, Nick Meaney, Eli Katoa and Josh King for Friday night’s clash against the Sydney Roosters.

“Everyone wants to see the best players full fit going into a finals series, and the fact these players, particularly with teams that can’t move anywhere on the ladder, are being managed so they are fully fit going into September, it’s only penalising the fans,” Tripp said.

“I don’t think it’s fair to penalise the paying members who want to see their best side run out every week.

“It also makes sense to have that buy because we’re a brutal game, and whilst we have three byes during the year, we still have more rounds than the AFL, as well as State of Origin, and it’s as taxing as any other competition in the world.

“I think a week off before the finals makes perfect sense. The naysayers will complain and say we shouldn’t break with tradition, but to me, it seems logical.”

Meanwhile, Wests Tigers have named rookie Heamasi Makasini as 18th man for the road trip to Canberra, while Broncos skipper Adam Reynolds (hamstring) has been named in jersey No. 22 for the all-Queensland game against the Cowboys.

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