Isaah Yeo, the co-captain of Penrith, has chastised himself for a “stupid” sin-binning that cost his team dear in Sunday’s shocking 22–20 Magic Round loss to the Warriors. As the Warriors restarted their faltering NRL season, the Panthers paid a heavy price for mistakes and a lack of discipline. They also appeared ungainly in attack without injured halfback Nathan Cleary.
At Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium, Taine Tuaupiki kicked the ball dead on the full right from the opening kickoff, shocking the Warriors. After barely two minutes, Dylan Edwards gave Penrith their first try of the game, giving the three-time defending premiers field position.
Midway through the half, Marcelo Montoya tied the score with a stunning put-down, but he hurt his shoulder going for the try. Penrith had a slim halftime lead with to goals from Scott Sorensen and Jarome Luai under the posts, but Yeo’s stupid mistake after the break saw him sent off for ten minutes and change the course of the game.
Just after halftime, the Panthers captain slammed into Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, the Warriors five-eighth substitute, trying to grab a quick tap from a penalty. Referee Grant Atkins was forced to sin-bin Yeo. And to make the most of having an extra man, the Warriors scored two tries in quick succession to grab the lead.
Yeo remarked, “(It was) just stupidity,” regarding the game-changing penalty he received. “Early in the second half, when you already know we’re not at our best, just a poor decision call. It caused us to have a difficult day. It was a bad example of leadership.”
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