They say revenge is a dish best served cold, and Brisbane Broncos delivered some payback from the deep freeze to end Penrith’s reign as premiers at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday.
The Broncos produced their second straight escape act of the finals to win the preliminary final 16-14, advancing to face Melbourne in the grand final next Sunday, and earning a shot at their first title since 2006. It was revenge of sorts, but only doing that in a grand final would have completed their redemption.
The Panthers led 14-0 after a dominant first half and appeared on track for a sixth consecutive grand final appearance, and a crack at a fifth title on the spin.
But in complete contrast to the 2023 decider, when the Broncos led 24-8 midway through the second half before losing, this time it was Penrith left ruing the one that got away.
The champions’ aura started to crumble in the 47th minute, when centre Kotoni Staggs scored to get the home team back into the game, bringing the parochial crowd to life.
By now, the momentum, which Penrith largely controlled in the first 40 minutes, had swung.
A scrappy try by towering forward Xavier Willison in the 69th minute left Penrith clinging to a 14-10 lead, and then five minutes from full-time, winger Deine Mariner locked up the scores.
Veteran Brisbane halfback Adam Reynolds, in his return from a hamstring injury, nailed the conversion.
It was a sweet moment for Reynolds, who lost grand finals against Penrith with South Sydney in 2021 and Brisbane in 2023.
Now the 35-year-old gets a chance to potentially win another premiership with coach Michael Maguire, to go with the title they won at Souths in 2014.
A second premiership would be the ultimate vindication for Maguire, who was sacked by both Souths and Wests Tigers before resurrecting his career in representative football with New Zealand and the NSW Blues.
He now has the chance to join an exclusive group of coaches who have won competitions with two clubs.
Brisbane have enjoyed an impressive first season under Maguire, finishing the preliminary rounds with five straight victories – including a 30-14 trouncing of Melbourne. They then scored an epic extra-time win against Canberra in the opening round of the play-offs.
That earned the Broncos a week off before the preliminary final and home-ground advantage at a sold-out Suncorp.
Moreover, they welcomed playmakers Reynolds and Ezra Mam back from injuries, although Patrick Carrigan (suspension) and Billy Walters (knee) were unavailable.
Brisbane’s cause received an unfortunate boost in the opening minutes, when Penrith back-rower Scott Sorensen was knocked senseless in a head clash.
It was not a good omen for the visitors, given that Sorensen has been a lucky charm since joining Penrith in 2021, featuring in all four of their grand final wins, and boasting an undefeated record in his first 12 play-offs.
Brisbane gave it everything in the first half but Penrith dominated the arm wrestle, enjoying the bulk of possession and field position, to lead 14-0 at the break.
Brisbane coach Michael Maguire appeared unconcerned in a half-time TV interview, predicting: “We’ve got some points in us.”
How right he was.
His players repaid his faith in them in due course. Like the Raiders, the Panthers weren’t quite sure what hit them.
“I keep saying that there’s a lot more in this team,” a delighted Maguire said post-game.
“I just think that the work they’ve been doing, ingraining what they’ve been doing, there’s so much more in the group.
“That’s exciting for me … we were challenged, right through the year, everyone knows that.
“But they’ve stuck solid to where they wanted to go, and it’s a really tight-knit group.”
