Well the Cows had two prseason hitouts and they went about as good as they could have. 34-30 against the Bulldogs in Sydney followed by a 66-24 toweling of Penrith last night.
Now it must be said neither the Bulldogs or Panthers fielded anything close to a full strength outfit, but you can only beat the team you're playing. And our team vs the Bulldogs was far from our best 17.
It was an important couple of weeks for a couple of players: Luki & Clifford. Helium was coming back off an ACL, but looked strong and had real impact. Great signs for the year. Meanwhile Clifford got first bite at the five-eighth jersey and looked classy in both games. He'll start at 6. I'm happy to admit I've been critical of Clifford in the past. The key for Jake is maintaining that level. His best football has been great, but he's been to prone to fading into the shadows. Hopefully his standard remains high across 2026.
And I think Purdue to centre to at least start the season given Tom Chester and Viliami Valea haven't featured in the the trial games - the only two fit centres we have are Purdue & Laybutt (though I just also saw Laybutt picked up a judiciary charge last night - not ideal. Guessing Chester might come in for Vegas - aparently he's close to full fitness and had a strong pre-season at centre)
Mahoney looked good last nite against Penrith. Looks a good pickup. kicked well, tackled well, distributed well. Excellent start.
Mikaele looked great in both games - he'll be in Vegas. Even Lodge (who I was (and still am) hyper critical of us signing) looked strong. Given big Jase is a year older and Jordan has retired, we really need some of our fringe & bench props (like Neame & Mikaele) to go to a new level and become solid regulars.
Sutton and King also looked like players who can play a signifcant role this season.
The other good news: no significant injuries. Viva Las Vegas
