A loss against a Robbie Farah-led Tigers last Saturday has the Newtown Jets desperate and determined for a win when they host the Penrith Panthers at Henson Park this weekend.
The Jets went with their opponents for more than half the game, however in the end the Tigers prevailed, with the loss leaving the Newtown side fifth and three points adrift of the all-important top four.
This Saturday the Jets will be looking for some redemption against a Penrith side which embarrassed them with a 60-6 thrashing back in round 16.
The Jets will however field a vastly different team to the one which took to their field some five weeks ago, while the Panthers will be without Jamie Soward after the pivot was released by Penrith and has since left for the UK SuperLeague.
With the Sharks first grade squad at or near full strength, the Jets have a strong contingent of NRL players included in this week’s team list.
One player missing for the Panthers game and for the rest of the season will be Newtown fullback and skipper Mitch Brown who like Soward has departed for the UK, effective last weekend.
The Newtown team to play the Panthers is listed below, while a brief match report for the Jets v Tigers game has also been provided by the Newtown Jets media.
ISP Team List – round 21
Jets v Panthers
Saturday, July 31
Henson Park
Kick-off – 3.00pm
1 Matt Evans
2 Travis Robinson
3 Jordan Drew
4 Jaline Graham
5 Jacob Gagan
6 Jason Schirnack
7 Josh Cleeland
8 Malakai Houma
9 Matt McIlwrick
10 Jesse Sene-Lefao
11 Anthony Moraitis
12 Kurt Capewell
13 Kurt Kara ©
Interchange
14 Junior Roqica
16 Kurt Dillon
17 Saulala Houma
20 Harrison Muller
By Newtown Jets Media
Fired-up Wests Tigers prevail over Jets
The controversial appearance of Robbie Farah in last Saturday’s Intrust Super Premiership NSW match at Leichhardt Oval between Wests Tigers and Newtown guaranteed a big crowd, as well as plenty of media attention.
Farah’s presence undoubtedly lifted his team-mates and he directly contributed to several Wests Tigers tries. The Jets took an early 12-0 through two tries to front-rower Jesse Sene-Lefao, but the Tigers then made good use of an extended spell of ball possession and took an 18-12 lead by the 35th minute. Newtown pulled back through a fine try to Anthony Moraitis and a late penalty goal to tie the scores up at 18-all at halftime.
Wests Tigers had the better of play for much of the second half, although possession was more evenly shared between the two teams. The Tigers scored four unanswered tries to take a commanding 42-18 lead, before the Jets claimed a late converted try to make the full-time score 42-24 in favour of the home team. A long-distance interception try by the flying Wests Tigers winger Josh Addo-Carr proved to be a killer blow for the Jets with about fifteen minutes remaining.
There were remarkable scenes at full-time as hundreds of Wests Tigers supporters swarmed on to the field and mobbed Farah as he fronted a battery of microphones. This win put Wests Tigers into a more secure position in the competition’s top four, while the Jets remain in what is now a more precarious fifth place.
The Jets were best served by forwards Jesse Sene-Lefao, Anthony Moraitis, Saulala Houma and Matt McIlwrick. Centre Jordan Drew set up a try for Anthony Moraitis in the first half, and he also ran a perfect line onto a slick pass from Moraitis to score what was Newtown’s final try for the game.
The Newtown Jets return home to Henson Park this Saturday, 30th July, to take on the sixth-placed Penrith Panthers at 3.00pm. Newtown took a severe mauling from the Panthers several weeks ago, but the Jets will be back on their home turf and there have been numerous changes to both teams since that earlier encounter.
