The victory came in the Group 10 Junior Rugby League qualifying semi-final at Tony Luchetti Sportsground and marked the first time this season the Panthers had gotten the better of the Magpies.

"It was so tense, that's the first time we've beaten them this year, so all the kids were pretty excited to get that one, especially being a semi-final," Panthers coach Zarlia Griffiths said.

The Panthers and Magpies have a rivalry that extends back to last season when they first stepped up into the Group 10 JRL competitive ranks as under 11s.

The honours in the 2020 battle belonged to Panthers who posted a 30-18 win over Cowra on grand final day to be crowned undefeated premiers.

This season, with a bulk of those premiership players returning for Panthers, the Magpies have been stiff opposition.

In round three the Magpies defeated Panthers 10-0 and in round 12 the Cowra outfit again prevailed, winning 24-14.

Saturday's qualifying semi-final was another great contest and in Griffiths' opinion, it was won off the back off good defence.

The opening quarter came and went with no score and in the second period the Magpies, who were looking to advance to the grand final qualifier, came hard at Panthers.

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The Magpies dominated possession and field position the entire quarter, fullback Thomas Craig making a number of incisive runs while five-eighth James Craig came within inches of scoring.

It took a huge defensive effort from Panthers to hold them out. Mokaraka brought physicality and intensity while at one stage five-eighth Riley Hall made three consecutive tackles.

It was an effort which saw the scoreline locked at nil-all at half-time and it built the confidence of the Panthers.

On the stroke of three-quarter-time Panthers hit the lead when Riley Larnach scored in the left corner, Riley Carter converting to make it 6-0.

It set the scene for a tense finish. The Magpies finally cracked Panthers' defence in the final quarter with a James Craig try, but the conversion attempt struck the crossbar and bounced wide.

Panthers hooker Freya Hodges, who also scored in the semi-finals last year, then sealed the win with a late try for her side.

"I reckon defence wins you games most days, so I think having five or six sets on our line and not letting them through, I think that's what did it," Griffiths said.

"I think everyone across the park did their job, I don't think there were any real standouts and that's a good thing. It means we're even and strong all across the playing field and were not depending on one person to do the miracle play."

Panthers will now wait and see what impact the New South Wales regional lockdown has on the rest of the finals series, with their next scheduled match currently a grand final qualifier against minor premiers Orange CYMS Green.

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