Check out the match preview and prediction for the 2025 National Rugby League Magic Round clash between the Penrith Panthers and the Brisbane Broncos.
MATCHDAY NEWS
MATCHDAY SCHEDULE
Penrith Panthers Vs Brisbane Broncos
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Date: Sunday May 4, 4:05pm (ADST)
MATCHDAY TEAM NEWS
Panthers: 1. Dylan Edwards 2. Paul Alamoti 3. Izack Tago 4. Luke Garner 5. Thomas Jenkins 6. Blaize Talagi 7. Nathan Cleary 8. Moses Leota 9. Luke Sommerton 10. Liam Henry 11. Scott Sorensen 12. Liam Martin 13. Isaah Yeo 14. Trent Toelau 15. Isaiah Papali’i 16. Lindsay Smith 17. Mavrik Geyer 18. Daine Laurie 19. Luron Patea 20. Casey McLean 21. Billy Scott 22. Jack Cole
Broncos: 1. Selwyn Cobbo 2. Deine Mariner 3. Kotoni Staggs 4. Gehamat Shibasaki 5. Jesse Arthars 6. Ben Hunt 7. Adam Reynolds 8. Patrick Carrigan 9. Billy Walters 10. Payne Haas 11. Xavier Willison 12. Jordan Riki 13. Kobe Hetherington 14. Cory Paix 15. Corey Jensen 16. Brendan Piakura 17. Jaiyden Hunt 18. Tyson Smoothy 19. Martin Taupau 20. Josiah Karapani 21. Jock Madden 22. Benjamin Te Kura
Referee: Todd Smith
Bunker: Chris Butler
MATCHDAY PREVIEW
The penultimate game of Magic Round 2025 sees the Penrith Panthers “hosting” the Brisbane Broncos in the second of three games on Sunday afternoon. The Broncos sit fifth on the ladder and need this win to stay in touch with the top four, while the Panthers find themselves in the very unfamiliar position at the bottom of the ladder and are looking to pick themselves up off the canvas and start their climb up the table.
The Broncos come into this match-up off the back of a big statement win over the Bulldogs, putting 42 points on the ladder leaders and will look to use this win as a springboard and start building some momentum before they hit the Origin period. The Panthers were dispatched of by a strong Manly side and will need a powerful effort against the Broncos if they are hoping to get a win to get their stop-start season back on track.
The Panthers have had some serious struggles to start the season, and with the Origin period on the horizon, will need to start winning games sooner rather than later if they want to have any hopes of playing finals football. They have not had the same impact on either side of the ball this season, but with the likes of Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo, and Dylan Edwards at the helm, write this Penrith side off at your own risk as it could all click in an instant.
The Broncos were firing on all cylinders as they ran up the score against the best defensive side in the league: it was largely on the back of their power game from their forwards with Pat Carrigan, Payne Haas and Xavier Willison all running in excess of 150 metres, with Haas topping out at 261 metres. If the Panthers don’t aim up and hold their ground, the Broncos will be kicking down the front door and a cricket score could be on the cards.
The Panthers’ record against the Broncos is pretty one-sided in recent history, with the Panthers having won eight of the last 10. The last time they fell to the Broncos was back in round 1 of the 2023 season when they went down by one point thanks to an Adam Reynolds field goal.
In team list news, Jordan Riki returns for the Broncos with Brendan Piakura reverting back to the bench and Tyson Smoothy dropping out; while for the Panthers, Kiwi representative Casey McLean has been dropped with Luke Garner taking his place in the centres while Trent Toelau joins the bench in place of Brad Schneider.
MATCHDAY PREDICTION
Broncos by 8 points.
Check out our Magic Round predictions here.
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