NRL Round 4 LIVE updates: Panthers blitzing Eels early in Battle of the West

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Eels centre Sean Russell takes an intercept from inside his own half and he’s got plenty of speed, but Casey McLean has a little more and drags him down. Parramatta are attacking a backpedalling Penrith defence now and have a great chance to grab their second try but the Panthers regroup over the next couple of tackles and Jonah Pezet knocks on to continue a frustrating afternoon.

Now Eels forward Sam Tuivaiti goes down with what looks at first like a shoulder problem but turns out to be a head injury assessment after going in low in a tackle, and has to leave the field.

Panthers 30, Eels 4 after 37 minutes

It’s officially Penrith’s best attacking first half ever against the Eels, and they’ve still got 10 minutes left. But out of nowhere Nathan Cleary makes a bad mistake, clubbing a kick off the inside of his boot over the left sideline on the full.

The Eels go on the attack and Mitch Moses throws a bullet short ball to Sam Tuivaiti but it’s got too much heat on it for the bench forward to take, and he knocks on a few metres short of the tryline.

Last week’s two-try hero Tallyn Da Silva gets subbed on first his first minutes of the game, replacing Ryley Smith at hooker for Parramatta.

Panthers 30, Eels 4 after 33 minutes

This is a proper romp. Penrith create an overlap on the left inside their own half and they attack it ruthlessly, Tom Jenkins running into space on the wing and linking up with Casey McLean who runs through a diving attempted tackle from Sean Russell to score the Panthers’ fifth try of the half.

Panthers 30, Eels 4 after 29 minutes

Kelma Tuilagai takes his eyes off a straightforward Mitch Moses pass and puts it down inside his own 40 metres, and Penrith get a golden chance to strike again. They get two set restarts then on tackle “three” Nathan Cleary kicks ahead, the ball strikes the padding on the goal post and Lindsay Smith pounces to score.

The look on Cleary’s face suggests he didn’t mean that at all – the ball would’ve gone well beyond the dead-ball line if it hadn’t hit the goal post padding – but Cleary has another assist and another goal from in front.

Panthers 24, Eels 4 after 27 minutes

The Eels have had a huge amount of possession now and they finally make it count, a good sweeping play from the right to the left ending with Josh Addo-Carr diving over in the left corner.

Mitch Moses has a tough conversion attempt from the sideline and it drifts just wide to the right.

Panthers 18, Eels 4 after 23 minutes

The Eels get their first attacking chance after Dylan Edwards is ruled to have knocked on in a play-the-ball, but the raid fizzles out when Kitione Kautoga spills a pass about 10 metres out from the Panthers’ line.

Now another error from Liam Martin followed almost immediately by a six-again for a ruck infringement – Penrith make a lot of these early in the tackle count, so it doesn’t hurt them too much – allow the Eels to get into their opponents half. And they get another set when Penrith are penalised after dragging Isaiah Iongi over the sideline after a tackle was ruled to have been completed.

The Eels get two more set restarts – but the second is called just as Mitch Moses puts a grubber in for Josh Addo-Carr on the left. The veteran winger gets to the ball first but he can’t ground it cleanly, with Brian To’o making an exellent tackle in his in-goal, so the Eels get a penalty for offside in lieu of that set restart.

Panthers 18, Eels 0 after 21 minutes

Tom Decent said before kick-off that this game could be “an absolute car crash for Parramatta” and that’s how it’s looking so far, with former Eel Blaize Talagi outleaping Isaiah Iongi to bring down a bomb and score Penrith’s third try inside the opening 15 minutes. They’re going at better than a point a minute so far.

Panthers 18, Eels 0 after 15 minutes

Penrith go on the attack again, with a fresh set after Eels forward Jack Williams misses an intercept attempt, and Nathan Cleary runs to the line then fires a short ball for a charging Isaiah Papali’i who splits the defence for the second try of the game. The Panthers have been pretty much flawless so far.

Panthers 12, Eels 0 after 12 minutes