Courtesy of Fox Sports

Undermanned Penrith defeat a near full-strength Parramatta 32-12 in trial at CUA

February 20, 2010 .
An undermanned Penrith upset a near-full strength Parramatta 32-12 in their NRL trial match at CUA Stadium.

On a night the NRL went head-to-head with an AFL pre-season cup game at Blacktown, an impressive crowd of 11,113 watched the Panthers cruise to victory.

The Panthers win came despite the absence of representative stars Petero Civoniceva, Michael Jennings, Luke Lewis and Trent Waterhouse.

Early premiership favourites Parramatta were almost at full strength, with Nathan Hindmarsh and Timana Tahu, the only absences from the side likely to line up for the season-opener with St George Illawarra on March 12.

Eels coach Daniel Anderson said the decision to play all his big names had backfired.

We're a bit of a casualty ward from it, which is never good from a trial,'' he said.

Ben Smiths probably the worst, he looks to have done something to his cheekbone.

"Daniel Mortimer's got a massive zipper, he had at least a dozen stitches.

"Jarryd (Hayne) hurt his sternum in the All Stars game and it flared up a little bit.''

But Anderson said said all three are likely to be fit for next Saturdays trial against the Roosters at Bluetongue Stadium.

Penrith coach Matt Elliott said it was pleasing to see some of the lesser lights shine.

"The fact that a lot of those guys were stuck into those positions and how they contributed was a real positive,'' he said.

"We're not getting carried away, but that was a nice platform to build on, for sure.''

The Panthers had all the early play, hitting the front in the fifth minute when Shane Elford crossed in the left corner, put in by a sizzling pass from Wade Graham.

They scored their second try nine minutes later, when Jarryd Hayne made an uncharacteristic blunder, dropping the ball in goal while fielding a Luke Walsh kick, with the halfback reacting quickest to pounce and put the Panthers 8-0 in front.

The Eels were sluggish throughout, with the exception of Fuifui Moimoi, who evidently hadn't been told the game was just a trial, making his impact felt when he came off the bench in the first half.

Parramatta's first try came when Ben Smith rose highest to touch down after great kick from Matt Keating in the 26th minute.

Leading 14-6 at half-time, the Panthers continued where they left off in the second stanza, with Travis Burns scoring two tries in 10 minutes to ensure Penrith claimed the Battle of the West Cup.

Luke Burt put some respectability back on the scoresheet when he combined cleverly with Shane Shackleton for Parramatta's second try.

However the win came at a cost for Penrith, who lost David Simmons through a shoulder injury and Brad Tighe with a leg complaint.

Eels five-eighth Daniel Mortimer left the field with a head injury midway through the first half and played no further part, but Eels officials were confident he hadn’t sustained any serious damage.