Penrith Panthers vs South Sydney Rabbitohs
17th October 0950hrs
Rugby League – Australia – NRL
Pick Draw
Bookmaker Bet365
Odds: 20/21 odds taken 02:17 GMT, Thursday, 15th October
This is the second of the Premierliary Finals matches in the NRL bracket. The winner will move through to the Grand Final.
In that big showcase match it will be either the Melbourne Storm or the Canberra Raiders that the winner of this match will face.
Penrith are the favourites to get the win in this fixture, having ended the regular season as the minor premiers.
But the South Sydney Rabbitohs are carrying some great form at the moment and pose a serious threat to the Panthers.
Table of Contents
Penrith Panthers Preview – Panthers to roar through to the final?
It has been some campaign from the Penrith Panthers who only suffered the one defeat in the regular season.
They finished top of the ladder, being crowned the minor premiers and they are naturally one of the front runners to be crowned the Premiership winners this season.
They opened in the qualifying/elimination round of the bracket with a narrow 29-28 win over the defending champions, the Sydney Roosters.
That was a fantastic match and it meant that the Panthers skipped a week to get through to the Preliminary Finals.
So they have had an extra week of rest compared to the South Sydney Rabbitohs who had a semi final match on their hands in between.
It is well worth a look at the most recent current form and it is an eight match winning streak that the Panthers are currently on.
It’s just been so impressive all round from them this season and they averaged 27 points per fixture.
A Panthers -6 handicap for this game is at 20/21 and worth some considerations for the handicap market in NRL betting* (odds taken 02:17 GMT, Thursday, 15th October).
The Panthers have won the last two meetings between themselves and the Rabbitohs as well.
They only met once during this regular season campaign and the Panthers took a 20-12 victory in that fixture, back in June.
There have been a lot of tight games recently between these two.
The Panthers are W3 L1 in their last four against South Sydney and none of the wins in that sequence were by more than an 8 point margin for either club.
This is a tense occasion with huge pressure because a place in the Grand Final awaits one of them.
South Sydney Rabbitohs Preview – Rabbitohs to offer some stern resistance
The Rabbitohs finished the regular season down in sixth place in the table with a W12 L8 record.
That was six wins fewer than what the Panthers managed across the course of the season.
But in attack, they were one of four teams to make it through to the Finals who scored more than 500 points in fixtures.
So they do have that edge about them. However, the Rabbitohs fall down a long way when it comes to matching the Panthers in defence.
Granted the Panthers had the best defensive record against all teams in the ladder.
South Sydney conceded an average of 17 per game while the defensive output of the Panthers was an average of 11 per game against.
But going back to their scoring, the Rabbitohs really ramped up their output at the end of the season.
It has been a staggering average of 48 points per game scored by them in their last three fixtures, two of those in this Finals bracket.
Don’t miss out on other Betting Tips & Predictions
Click here for more Betting Tips
South Sydney Rabbitohs crushed the Newcastle Knights in their first match in the NRL finals bracket and then faced a tough task against Parramatta.
But again the Rabbitohs showed very threatening form to take a 38-24 victory in that contest.
Still, for all of their current form they are the underdogs here to the tune of 13/8 in the match outright* (odds taken 02:17 GMT, Thursday, 15th October).
In their last even meetings with the Penrith Panthers, two of the three wins that the Rabbitohs have taken in that sequence were in designated away games.
The Raiders look a confident side, but they haven’t faced any one of the calibre of the Penrith Panthers in this Finals series.
Penrith Panthers vs South Sydney Rabbitohs Betting Advice
We have to ride the Penrith Panthers train all the way to an expected vitoy in this one. They have been just phenomenal all season.
They have had an extra rest and extra time to prepare for this as well which is a huge advantage.
So we expect them to get through to the Grand Final by taking this one.
We are going for a Panthers 1-12 winning margin option at 17/10* (odds taken 02:17 GMT, Thursday, 15th October).
Key Facts – Penrith Panthers vs South Sydney Rabbitohs Betting Tip
- Penrith Panthers have lost one game all season
- Penrith Panthers beat the Rabbitohs in the one league meeting this season
- South Sydney Rabbitohs are on a three-match winning streak
Without question the Rabbitohs have been competitive in the last few weeks and have taken their scoring to the next level.
But they are facing such a well-organized and strong Penrith defence that we can see them being shut down in this preliminary final.
Penrith were relatively comfortable winners over the Rabbitohs just back in June and can secure a deserved place in the Grand Final.
The best betting odds for Penrith Panthers vs South Sydney Rabbitohs
Penrith Panthers to win: 9/20 at Bet365
Draw: 22/1 at Bet365
South Sydney Rabbitohs to win: 7/4 at Bet365
