For all of the profitable Penrith have finished in recent times, they’ve by no means received like this, with such terror and marvel.
By means 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 up to now forward of everybody else; it is onerous to know which crew may stand up as a possible challenger.
All of this has been true about varied Penrith groups since their nice advance started, however such is the dimensions of their dominance in 2026 that it has been totally different from all these different years.
The statistical proof is in every single place, and the numbers are astounding. It is the most effective 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 sport and conceding simply eight.
Penrith has totally destroyed each crew it is confronted up to now this season. (Getty Photographs: Darrian Traynor)
Winger Thomas Jenkins has had 12 tries in 5 matches, probably the most of any participant by the first 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 report for many consecutive braces.
He is on monitor to interrupt Dave Brown’s single-season report of 38 tries, however he may need to accept merely breaking Alex Johnston’s NRL period report 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 all the things the Storm now stand for was nonetheless rising from the primordial ooze.
Penrith has performed every of final yr’s different preliminary finalists already this season. (Getty Photographs: Brendon Thorne)
It capped off a collection of three video games towards final yr’s fellow preliminary finalists, ending with Penrith outscoring their opponents 102-16.
Add within the 40-4 win towards the Roosters, who have been among the many premiership favourites earlier than a ball was kicked, and the Panthers have completely laid waste to the groups that have been alleged to be their championship contemporaries this yr.
It isn’t precisely new to see the Panthers profitable, however that is totally different. They don’t seem to be beating different groups; they’re destroying them.
There are three key causes this has turn out to be 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 imagine it.
The Panthers are adamant their greatest soccer remains to be to return. (Getty Photographs: Izhar Khan)
“We’re trying to find perfection — it is sort of an phantasm, as a result of we’ll by no means get there,” centre Paul Alamoti stated.
“But when we proceed to attempt to get higher on daily basis, that is all we will be in command of and deal with.
“We have scored a whole lot of factors, however there’s little pockets of our sport the place we do assume we’ll get higher.
“Defensively, we leaked 20 factors two weeks in the past and 10 factors final week, and everybody desires to maintain the opposite crew to zero each week; that is the aim.”
The second motive 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 isn’t as if scoring factors was ever overly troublesome for the Panthers by 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 up to now this season has been totally 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 specifically 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 nicely.
“We’re taking part in our personal type, we’re seeing issues, and we’re not afraid to take them. That is been an evolution in my sport,” Talagi stated.
“Everyone seems to be all the time 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 aspect 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 afterward — Penrith welcomed again 16 of their high 17 from final yr.
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 obtained to stay collectively after final yr. There wasn’t a whole lot of change. That is helped us begin the yr nicely,” Leota stated.
“We’ve got the identical crew, we have not needed to work round changing somebody.”
For the primary time in years, Penrith didn’t have to switch a serious participant over the summer time. (Getty Photographs: Quinn Rooney)
These adjustments would make Penrith nice in any time or place within the sport’s historical past, however the ultimate 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 report 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 have been added to the league and the expertise pool could not take it because the Sea Eagles and Raiders surged to an identical 20-2 data.
Parramatta famously set the report for many factors in a daily season with a whopping 839 in 2001 — the identical yr the NRL went from limitless to restricted interchange — and that season Newcastle additionally broke the earlier report regardless of scoring greater than 50 fewer factors than the Eels.
The one severe 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 report of 19 consecutive wins.
South Sydney completed because the fourth most prolific attacking crew of all time, whereas that yr’s Manly aspect 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 means of 5 weeks, this season seems to be very similar to that one. Penrith have scored greater than 40 factors in every of the final three weeks, which for all of the profitable 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 likely to be valuable little firm on the high. In 1995 and 2001 and 2021 a number of groups have been in a position to adapt to the brand new panorama — data have been damaged by some groups and challenged by others.
Not this time, a minimum of not up to now. Proper now, Penrith stands alone.
There may be nonetheless time for different groups to work issues out, however after this weekend, a few of them can have performed 1 / 4 of their season.
A battling crew would not all the time have as a lot time as they assume, 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 targeted, clear and ravenous.
They’ve certainty in a sport filled 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 whole lot of season left. State of Origin will give them a shake, maybe like by no means earlier than, as a result of a report 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 fashionable world. Nor was 4.
Penrith broke these notions then like they’re breaking data now, and when you take them at their phrase, the most effective is but to return.
It’d take bravery to say they’re unsuitable, and whereas this season nonetheless has a future, proper now it is onerous to think about it belonging to anybody else.
