NRL Analysis: Panthers Lose Again & The Best Edges in Attack

Now entering Round 6 of the 2025 NRL season, we’re starting to get a good idea of how teams like to play and where on the field they like to target.

Thanks to Stats Insider’s Try Location Analysis tool, we have the numbers to dig in a little bit deeper.

Thursday Night Footy

Sorry, Dolphins fans. The team played well and back-to-back wins have got the season back on track, the Penrith Panthers are the story here.

They’ve lost five on the bounce and will struggle to make the finals from here let alone compete for the premiership.

It’s easy to disect things in the aftermath of another loss; we’re all experts now. But what is becoming clear is the loss of James Fisher-Harris and Jarome Luai. While the Panthers have lost a lot of quality players over the years, Fisher-Harris and Luai were fundamental to the famous Panthers system that proved so effective. Fisher-Harris was instrumental to their yardage and defence while Luai provided the consistency and cohesion in attack that allowed them to make the most of limited opportunities, often late in games with two points on the line.

The young players are still learning their roles. It’s a fairly simple system to play out, but requires focus and attention to detail for the full 80 minutes. As we’re seeing, particuarly on the edges in defence, that 80-minute performance isn’t quite there.

Ivan Cleary still has a lot of time to get the team playing well. It wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see them among the best in the NRL on form by the end of Round 27. However, with five losses already and a difficult State of Origin period to navigate, will the Panthers be there to make the most of any improvements in September?

Quick Edge Attack Notes

We’ve got the two best attacking edges in the NRL to come, but first, a few notes on the other numbers that stand out in Stats Insider’s Try Location Analysis tool.

The Parramatta Eels have scored 73% of their tries down the left edge - the biggest proportion of any area in the competition. Interestingly, they’re the only team in the NRL yet to score a try in the middle.

The South Sydney Rabbitohs have scored 17 tries in 2025. As expected, the majority have come down the left edge. Only one down the right, though? That might become an issue as the season goes on. Similarly, the St George Illawarra Dragons have scored just twice down the right side.

Jarome Luai is the big-name addition to the Wests Tigers' left edge, but they’ve scored the majority of their tries (52%) down the right side.

The Melbourne Storm seem to be able to score from anywhere. Their attack is a combination of chaos and cohesion. With it, they’re scoring 52% of their tries down the right side, with Eli Katoa¹ featuring heavily alongside Jahrome Hughes and Ryan Papenhuyzen.

Looking at big changes year-on-year, the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs scored only seven of their 97 tries in 2024 through the middle of the field. They’ve scored six in the centre third already, with a relatively even split across the left (41%) and right (32%) edges.

14 Tries - Sea Eagles Right Edge

The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles have struggled for consistency to start the NRL season, but when they’re on, their attack is one of the most lethal in the competition.

Daly Cherry-Evans is a wizard, while Jason Saab’s speed on the wing adds an element to their attack that few teams can replicate. However, Haumole Olakau’atu² is the key to their right edge being the second-best scoring edge in the NRL.

Olakau’atu is one of the most destructive players in rugby league. There are worse game plans than simply giving him the ball and seeing what happens. However, the Sea Eagles are using him in various ways to keep the defence guessing.

Cherry-Evans knows how to manipulate a line, isolate defenders and play his backrower into points. What makes the Sea Eagles right edge so dangerous, though, is how effective they are outside of the obvious.

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