Former New Zealand captain Hugh McGahan believes the Penrith Panthers’ win in the NRL Grand Final on Sunday night could be just the start of a sustained period of success.
The Panthers beat South Sydney 14-12 in a tight contest at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium, with McGahan describing the match as “a real spectacle”.
When asked by SENZ Breakfast co-host Israel Dagg about the possibility of a Panthers dynasty, McGahan said: “Ivan's (Cleary) got a good production line going on, I think he's built something there that the players will start to live by … similar to a Melbourne Storm or a Sydney Roosters.”
Following Penrith’s second Grand Final in two years, their players have been hot property for other clubs.
McGahan admitted the Panthers could face a retention battle in the near future however, in their quest to be a dominant force in the league in the coming years.
“Their problem will be holding onto those players, depending on the relationship with everyone, they’re going to be commanding bigger price tags, when their contracts come around for negotiations, so holding onto them is their biggest problem,” McGahan said.
“There’s already a couple who are leaving this year to the Bulldogs and a couple of other different clubs, but that’s sport, there’s not much you can do about that.”
Matt Burton (Canterbury Bulldogs), Brent Naden (Canterbury Bulldogs), Tevita Pangai Junior (Canterbury Bulldogs), Kurt Capewell (Brisbane Broncos) and Billy Burns (St George Illawarra Dragons) have already signed deals with new clubs for 2022 and beyond.
Penrith broke an 18-year drought to claim their third premiership in club history, adding a 2021 triumph to their 1991 and 2003 wins.