NRL Round 21 Preview and Prediction - Penrith Panthers v Canterbury Bulldogs @ Pepper Stadium

Penrith Panthers (9th) v Canterbury Bulldogs (13th) @ Pepper Stadium
Preview - We get a Thursday night Western Sydney derby as the Bulldogs travel to the foot of the mountains to take on the Panthers at Pepper Stadium. The home side are making one of their customary late season rallies, having won 5 from their past 6 games to sit just 2 points outside the Top 8. Last weekend the Panthers started slowly but managed to rally to get the better of the Titans 24-16 at Pepper Stadium to keep their momentum going. The Bulldogs are in a mess right now after being handed a 42-12 thrashing against the high flying Broncos at Suncorp Stadium. Sitting on just 7 wins, the Bulldogs are playing uninspiring football and look certain to miss out on the finals for the first time in 6 seasons under Des Hasler.
Penrith Panthers’ Scouting Report - The Panthers have suffered a blow ahead of this crucial game, with Captain Matt Moylan missing his second game in 3 weeks with a hamstring injury. Tyrone May once again fills in for Moylan after be partnered Nathan Cleary in the halves during their comeback victory over the Warriors two weeks ago. Dean Whare could be set to return from a broken jaw, as well as Bryce Cartwright who played State Cup last week. Both have been named on an extended bench.
Canterbury Bulldogs’ Scouting Report - The Bulldogs welcome back their inspirational Captain, James Graham, after he was forced to take a month off with a knee injury. Danny Fualalo moves back to the bench whilst Francis Tualau drops out of the 17. Des Hasler will continue with his latest experiment of starting Matt Frawley at halfback and Moses Mbye in the hooking role.
Verdict - Hard to see anything other than a thumping win for the Panthers over a Bulldogs side that looks to have just about signed off for the season. Penrith, only a couple months ago, thumped the Bulldogs 38-0, and whilst it might be a stretch to think they can do that again, since that result the Panthers have got better and the Bulldogs have gone backwards. Given it is somewhat of a rival game, and the Bulldogs pride will be hurting from that earlier thrashing at the hands of the Panthers, I expect them to be more competitive. However I give them very little chance of causing an upset here. Put simply, the Panthers have far more strike power and way too much to play for here at home and I expect them to be winning this game by more than a couple tries.