Panthers vs Dragons, Saturday night footy tips, May 26

7.35pm Saturday May 26, 2018, at Panthers Stadium

THE blockbuster match of round 12 gets the premium time slot as the Penrith Panthers host the St George Dragons on Saturday night.

The second placed Panthers crushed the Tigers to kick off the round last week by 14-points. Penrith shutout their opponents on Thursday night, restricting Wests to just two points.

The Panthers have now recorded eight wins from 11 matches and loom as a strong premiership hope.

The St George Dragons are the only team in the competition with a better record than the Panthers, and the fans will be excited about what they have produced so far.

While their loss to the Bunnies two weeks ago was bitterly disappointing, their gritty win over the Canberra Raiders in round 11 proved the Dragons can still produce wins when things aren’t going their way.

It’s first against second to headline round 12, but who will come out triumphant?

Players to watch – Panthers v Dragons

Panthers – Nathan Cleary: Clearly should be pushing his case for a spot in NSW’s side. The gun halfback made a successful return from a knee injury, and Tigers’ coach and Nathan’s father Ivan Cleary said that he “didn’t look short of a gallop”. We’re anticipating a strong showing second-up.

Dragons – Gareth Widdop: It should be no surprise to see Gareth Widdup is the second favourite at Sportsbet ($6) to win this year’s Dally M Medal. The Dragons captain will be the main driving force on Saturday and the big red V will need all of his skill to get the win here

Panthers team

1 Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, 2 Christian Crichton, 3 Tyrone Peachey, 4 Dean Whare, 5 Tyrone Phillips, 6 James Maloney (c), 7 Nathan Cleary, 8 Trent Merrin, 9 Sione Katoa, 10 Reagan Campbell-Gillard, 11 Corey Harawira-Naera, 12 Isaah Yeo, 13 James Fisher-Harris

Interchange: 14 Wayde Egan, 15 Jack Hetherington, 16 Viliame Kikau, 17 James Tamou

Dragons team

1 Matt Dufty, 2 Nene Macdonald, 3 Euan Aitken, 4 Tim Lafai, 5 Jason Nightingale, 6 Gareth Widdop (c), 7 Ben Hunt, 8 James Graham, 9 Cameron McInnes, 10 Paul Vaughan, 11 Tyson Frizell, 12 Tariq Sims, 13 Jack De Belin

Interchange: 14 Jeremy Latimore, 15 Kurt Mann, 16 Leeson Ah Mau, 17 Blake Lawrie

Panthers v Dragons – who wins?

We’re favouring the Panthers to win this in a tight tussle.

The addition of Nathan Cleary adds a ton of class to the Panthers, while their forward pack has been more than holding their own.

The Dragons are no pushovers – as the top of the ladder position suggests – but are they as strong talent-wise as the Panthers? We don’t think so.

We’re backing the Panthers in what should be the match of the season.

Tip: Penrith Panthers to win ($2.10 at Sportsbet)