Whether the game is Penrith or Bathurst, Panthers coach Anthony Griffin is only focused on building off his team’s previous performances.
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Penrith Panthers, who are playing in Bathurst for a fourth consecutive year, will play the Canberra Raiders at Carrington Park on Saturday evening and Griffin wants a solid showing from his team.
“The main thing is to get our preparation right and try to keep building off what we've been doing the last few weeks,” he said.
“I need a really strong performance tomorrow night. Canberra are a quality side.
“I'm sure it's going to be a great match for all the people that will come out to watch.”
While it may be Panthers’ fourth year playing in Bathurst, Griffin and the team feel a strong connection to the local community.
“I wouldn't say it's a home ground but obviously Pepper is our home stadium. But certainty we feel very connected to the town and the region,” he said.
“We’ll have a couple of runs on the field by the time we'll play, which will help.”
Panthers arrived in Bathurst on Wednesday and had their first run on Carrington Park on Thursday morning.
Griffin praised the surface’s condition.
“We trained there yesterday morning. It’s really good,” he said.
“It's a first class field, a really good surface. The players are looking forward to getting out there.”
While crossing the Blue Mountains presents a different climate to Western Sydney, Griffin said it’s good to have a change in scenery.
“We love coming to Bathurst. It's a big part of our club and what we're trying to do for the future,” he said.
“So it's been good for the players to come out here and train and mix with the players here.”
Panthers are fresh from a 38-nil win over the Canterbury Bulldogs and will be in the hunt for a fourth consecutive win against the Raiders.
The Raiders, who played in last year’s preliminary final, are yet to reach the heights of their 2016 campaign.
Last weekend’s loss to Manly Sea Eagles, on Sunday, came via a golden point Daly Cherry-Evans field goal.
This weekend’s game will be the first time the two teams have played since last year’s semi-final match, which Canberra won 22-12.
Jarrod Croker has labelled Saturday’s game as a “must win”, to stay in touch with the top eight.
Group 10 premier league teams Bathurst Panthers and Orange Hawks will play a curtain raiser match at 2.30pm.
Gates open at 2pm, with the NRL match to kick-off is at 5.30pm.