In an NRL upset that echoes one of professional wrestling’s most iconic shocking results, the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs have brought Penrith Panthers’ historic undefeated season bid to a crashing halt, claiming a 32-16 victory at Sydney’s Accor Stadium on Thursday night. The match was billed as a celebration for Panthers star halfback Nathan Cleary, who was set to mark his 200th NRL appearance, but the night quickly turned sour for the league-leading side. What made the result all the more remarkable is that the Bulldogs claimed the win without their injured captain Stephen Crichton, silencing widespread critics of the club and young playmaker Lachlan Galvin in one dominant 80-minute performance.
Galvin entered the match under intense public and media scrutiny, with widespread questions raised over his attacking output and ability to compete at the top NRL level. But the young five-eighth delivered a career-defining performance that dominated the contest from the opening whistle. He finished the night with four line-break assists, constantly tearing apart Penrith’s vaunted left-edge defence, and built a devastating on-field combination with forward Jacob Preston that stepped up multiple gears when it mattered most. Galvin guided the Bulldogs to an early 16-0 lead, setting up Preston for a pivotal try with a perfectly weighted short ball before creating the match-clinching score for Sitili Tupouniua. Beyond his playmaking, he showed unprecedented defensive intensity, repeatedly crashing into tackles and displaying a kicking range and accuracy that had not been seen in his previous outings this season.
Recalled winger Bronson Xerri, returning to the top flight after a spell in the NSW Cup, added to the Bulldogs’ standout performance by setting up the club’s second try, while coach Cameron Ciraldo will now see this upset as one of the signature wins of his tenure at Belmore. Penrith entered the contest on unprecedented form: they became the first NRL side in history to open a season with five straight 20-point-plus victories, fueling widespread discussion about whether they could become the first team in decades to finish a full regular season undefeated. That conversation has now been firmly put to rest. To make matters worse for the Panthers, star edge forward Liam Martin was forced to leave the match early with a left knee injury, and key playmakers Cleary and Isaah Yeo turned in uncharacteristically underwhelming performances, with the club’s legendary impenetrable defence shut out for a full 38 minutes in the second half.
Panthers winger Tom Jenkins did notch one historic milestone on the night, scoring two tries to extend his run of consecutive doubles to six matches. That achievement levels the record set by South Sydney Rabbitohs legend Alex Johnston back in 2021, and pushes Jenkins’ season try total to an extraordinary 14. His second try was particularly impressive, a perfectly timed finish onto a pin-point cross-field kick from Cleary that will feature in NRL highlight reels all season.
The match was not without its contentious moments, however. Teenage Panthers forward Casey McLean, a touted future Origin representative, faces an anxious wait for the NRL’s match charge sheet to drop on Friday after he was sin-binned for a high tackle on Bulldogs prop Max King. The Bunker reviewed the contact on replay, which saw McLean’s shoulder connect with King’s head, and ordered referee to send the player from the field for a 10-minute spell off the pitch after the completion of the next set. Bulldogs utility Kurt Mann was also placed on report for a similar high contact incident on Panthers forward Scott Sorensen, but escaped a sin-bin suspension during the match.