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Penrith Panthers vs Parramatta Eels NRL Round 4 Tips & Prediction - Relentless Panthers to dominate again

Andrew Hendrie

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Last updated: Thu 26 Mar 2026 22:12

Andrew Hendrie 26 Mar 2026

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Penrith Panthers vs Parramatta Eels predictions for Saturday's NRL Round 4 game
Panthers firing on all cylinders, leaking just 10 points in opening three wins
Eels looking shaky, especially on the edges - value on Martin & Papali'i for tries
Penrith tipped for another routine win & to hold Eels to minimal points
The game is scheduled for kick off at 5.30pm AEDT on Saturday March 28

Penrith Panthers vs Parramatta Eels

Penrith Panthers vs Parramatta Eels NRL Round 4 Tips & Prediction

The Panthers are tipped to suffocate the Eels with their relentless defence and run away with another big win when the two Western Sydney teams collide at CommBank Stadium on Saturday.

Penrith Panthers vs Parramatta Eels NRL Round 4 Tips & Prediction
Panthers vs Eels Stats & Trends
Panthers vs Eels Head To Head
Penrith Panthers Form Analysis
Penrith Panthers Team News
Parramatta Eels Form Analysis
Parramatta Eels Team News

It's crazy to think when they've basically dominated the NRL over the last five years, but I'm not sure the Panthers have ever been this far in front of the pack coming into Round 4.

Ivan Cleary's side have conceded just 10 points across their opening three wins - and those victories were against the Broncos, Sharks and Roosters - teams that a lot of people had making the top four in the preseason. Nathan Cleary is pulling the strings, Milky Jenkins has transformed into a tryscoring machine, Brian To'o is scoring freakish double grubber kick tries, Isaah Yeo continues to lead from the front and Dylan Edwards is back to his best - good luck rest of the competition.

The Eels have troubled Penrith over recent years, but a lot of that was under Brad Arthur and his ad-lib style of footy, that caused the Panthers a few headaches. I'm not sure the more stoic approach under Jason Ryles is going to come anywhere near to getting the job done.

I'm taking the Panthers to cover a -8.5 line and win with Under 55.5 points, which has comfortably landed in their opening three games. I'll also be backing Penrith's rock solid defence to hold firm again and restrict Parramatta to Under 16.5 team points.

Tough to find some value in the Panthers' potential tryscorers, but I like the look of some second-rowers - namely Liam Martin or Isaiah Papali'i. The Eels have leaked nine tries in three games to either second-rowers or centres this season - I'm worried about their left edge defence, with Brian Kelly coming back into the side. He was all over the place defensively against Melbourne when they put 50 on the Eels in Round 1 and could get found out again.

Panthers vs Eels Stats & Trends

Panthers have won all three games in 2026 by 20+ points
Panthers have conceded just 10 points across those three wins
Panthers have held Eels to 10 points in their last two meetings
Eels managed just four points vs Storm in Round 1
Eels have conceded nine tries to second-rowers and centres in three games this season

Panthers vs Eels Head To Head

Panthers have won the last four meetings between the sides, including 18-10 and 32-10 victories last season.

Year	Winner	Score	Venue
2025	Penrith Panthers	32–10	CommBank
2025	Penrith Panthers	18–10	CommBank
2024	Penrith Panthers	36–34	CommBank
2024	Penrith Panthers	26–18	BlueBet
2023	Parramatta Eels	32–18	BlueBet

Penrith Panthers Form Analysis

It's been a flawless start to the season for Penrith.

It's like last season's preliminary finals loss instilled a new hunger in the team and they are back better than ever.

The Panthers made an opening statement by avenging that prelim loss to Brisbane in the opening round, shutting the premiers out 26-0.

Ivan Cleary's side backed it up with a routine 26-6 win over the Sharks in Bathurst before completely dismantling the Roosters 40-4 last week at Allianz.

Tom Jenkins has made the left wing spot his own, scoring eight tries across three games.

Penrith Panthers Team News

Jack Cogger comes onto the bench for Jack Cole in the only change for Penrith.

Penrith Panthers Team List

1. Dylan Edwards

2. Thomas Jenkins

3. Paul Alamoti

4. Casey McLean

5. Brian To’o

6. Blaize Talagi

7. Nathan Cleary

8. Moses Leota

9. Mitch Kenny

10. Lindsay Smith

11. Isaiah Papali’i

12. Liam Martin

13. Isaah Yeo

Interchange

14. Jack Cogger

15. Billy Phillips

16. Scott Sorensen

17. Luke Garner

Reserves

18. Izack Tago

19. Freddy Lussick

20. Kalani Going

21. Jack Cole

22. Jaxen Edgar

Parramatta Eels Form Analysis

The Eels come into this clash following back-to-back wins, but you can't really say they've had a good start to the season.

Parramatta were demolished 52-4 by Melbourne in Round 1 in a performance that highlighted clear weaknesses that are easily exposed by the elite teams.

Ever the enigmatic side, the Eels bounced back with a 40-32 upset win over reigning premiers Brisbane, showcasing their potential.

However, last week's 30-20 win over the Dragons wasn't impressive and I reckon most other sides in the comp would have made them pay in that second-half, but St George Illawarra's halves just don't have the creativity for points.

Parramatta Eels Team News

Brian Kelly replaces the injured Jordan Samrani in the centres, while J'maine Hopgood is out for the year with an ACL, meaning Luca Moretti comes onto the pine.

Parramatta Eels Team List

1. Isaiah Iongi

2. Bailey Simonsson

3. Brian Kelly

4. Sean Russell

5. Josh Addo-Carr

6. Jonah Pezet

7. Mitchell Moses

8. Jack Williams

9. Ryley Smith

10. Junior Paulo

11. Kelma Tuilagi