THE Newcastle Knights have sent their loyal fans home disappointed for a fifth straight game after a 42-6 hammering from reigning premiers Penrith at McDonald Jones Stadium on Sunday.
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Inspired by a master class from skipper Nathan Cleary, eager to atone from his disappointing performance in Origin I, the Panthers were ruthless in dispatching an outclassed Newcastle.
The home team's cause was not helped when captain Kalyn Ponga, a hero for Queensland four nights earlier, suffered a head knock trying to prevent a try by giant Penrith forward Viliame Kikau and was helped from the field in the 14th minute.
Ponga failed his head-injury assessment and was unable to return.
It was another demoralising night for the majority of the 21,332 diehards who passed through the turnstiles.
Sunday's demolition followed consecutive home defeats against Manly (30-6), Parramatta (39-2), Melbourne (50-2), and Brisbane (36-12). The collective score in those five games has been 197-28, or 39-5 on average.
Never in the Knights' history have they suffered so many back-to-back blowouts in their own backyard.
The result left Newcastle 12th on the points table, although if not for the two points they have received for the bye, they would be 13th.
The Panthers maintained their four-point advantage on top of the table.
The signs were ominous for the home team from the moment the Panthers kept the ball alive in the fifth minute and Cleary stretched out to score. Nine minutes later, Penrith spread the ball to their left edge and Kikau, with space to wind up, was always going to be impossible for Ponga to stop.
Newcastle's skipper made a brave effort anyway, but succeeded only in crashing to the ground, where he lay prone until he received treatment.
As Ponga was helped to the sideline, Cleary converted for a 12-0 lead and the result was never in doubt from that moment onwards.
Further tries by wingers Taylan May and Brio To'o, both converted by Cleary, gave the Panthers a 24-0 lead, and then Cleary added a penalty goal just before half-time to leave the Knights facing an unassailable deficit, against the NRL's best defensive outfit.
Further tries by centres Izak Tago and Stephen Crichton, and a second by To'o, made it 42-0 to the visitors and a half-century loomed large, given there were 13 minutes to play.
Instead the Knights found enough resolve to keep them at bay and actually managed to score a try, a long-range effort by Edrick Lee.
As well as losing Ponga early in proceedings, the Knights were also without key players Daniel Saifiti and Jayden Brailey, but the Panthers also rested co-captain Issah Yeo after Origin I.
Panthers coach Ivan Cleary was also a late withdrawal after recent surgery on his knee, leaving deputy Cameron Ciraldo at the helm.
