The Penrith Panthers have fostered the growth and success of superstar talents and the signs are that this trend of young talent will continue.
The names turning heads in this preseason are forward Liam Henry, creative playmaker Jack Cole, and hooker Ryley Smith.
NRL and Penrith fans may already be familiar with Liam Henry and Jack Cole. They debuted from the bench in Round 25 in a 38-8 loss against the Cowboys.
The two were part of Penrith's NSW Cup team that won the premiership, Smith also a winner with the Panthers' Jersey Flegg side.
New signing Luke Garner who arrived from the Wests Tigers is one player who has been very impressed by what he has seen.
“There's a couple of young kids that have come back flying. There is young Liam Henry, who is a middle forward. I think he has played a bit of reserve grade now to. He's come up and honestly just eats up fitness for run. It's pretty impressive, I envy him a lot.” Garner said.
“Some of the others to, like Ryley Smith and Jack Cole, who are super fit as well. They're impressive athletes too.”
Liam Henry was 10th in the NSW Cup for running metres with 2,633, 19th for tackles with 554, and was 12th for decoy runs with 110.
Jack Cole was 15th for linebreak assists with 12 and was 11th for intercepts with two.
The Penrith Panthers play their first game in 2023 against the Brisbane Broncos on March 3. They look to be one of only a few elite sides to 3-peat (winning three consecutive premierships).