Penrith Panthers vs North Queensland Cowboys Prediction: A tough but important one for both sides

This week's 27th NRL encounter features the Penrith Panthers hosting the North Queensland Cowboys at BlueBet Stadium. The Penrith Panthers were defeated by the Parramatta Eels at home last Saturday, while the North Queensland Cowboys defeated the Miami Dolphins away from home.

The Panthers are coming off an unexpected loss to the Parramatta Eels (18-32) in the minor finals of the 2022 NRL season, which ended their eight-game winning streak and may have cost them the minor premiership. Seven times throughout the game, the Parramatta Eels broke the line of the Penrith Panthers, which is just under twice as many as the Panthers had all season. Maika Sivo scored four tries while tormenting the right side of the Panthers' defense. Dylan Edwards will start at fullback for the Penrith Panthers in this game. Scott Sorensen, Sunia Turuva, and Mitch Kenny have all returned. It remains to be seen whether or not Ivan Cleary will rest any of his starters or make any late alterations to his lineup this week.

The North Queensland Cowboys ended a losing streak of three games in convincing fashion against the Dolphins the week before. Because of Scott Drinkwater's disruptive play all over the field, the North Queensland Cowboys occasionally appeared to be unstoppable in attack. The defense of the North Queensland Cowboys found some form as a unit and was able to limit the Dolphins to only two tries. Both of those tries were scored by Jamayne Isaako, who is currently the top try scorer in the league. With 30 points earned after a total of 23 games, the North Queensland Cowboys are now ranked ninth in the National Rugby League (NRL) standings.

The North Queensland Cowboys have defeated the Penrith Panthers in their most recent two matches. There has been a point total of under in three of the last four matches between the Penrith Panthers and the North Queensland Cowboys. At BlueBet Stadium, the Panthers have defeated the Cowboys in each of the last four meetings between the two teams.

After the victory of the Brisbane Broncos on Thursday, and depending on the lineup that the Panthers choose to use for gameday, this contest between the Penrith Panthers and the North Queensland Cowboys has a chance to be the most exciting game of the round. It is difficult to make a prediction this far in advance, but given the Panthers' desire to finish on top of the standings and the fact that they will be playing at home, I am going to put my money on them winning. Based on the previous meetings between these two teams as well as the previous matches involving the Cowboys, I will be betting on the under 41.5 game total. Because the North Queensland Cowboys will want to put in a lot of effort to make it to the postseason in 2023, Scott Drinkwater will have to maintain his status as the top player on the field for the North Queensland Cowboys, so I'll bet on him to score a try in this game.