I hate to use the ref as an excuse, and we were never likely to beat Penrith, but once they had 90% possession in the first 20 minutes, it was never going to end well. The boys didn't give up, they were just depleted. Sometimes, 50/50 calls change the whole complexion of the game.
When To'o fielded that kick and Mak was taken out of the play, that's a tigers penalty, which meant possession on the Penrith 22. Instead, To'o takes off downfield against a tiring, scattered defence and there's another 6 points before you know it.
Mak cops a shoulder charge from a front rower and turns the ball over. There's another WT possession that ends in points for Penrith.
You can't win without the ball, and I know we turned it over plenty, but the ref doesn't have to hand it over as well.
I know, we still would have lost, but not by that score. Maybe not even to nil.
BTW, Makasini is an 18 year old kid on the receiving end of, at minimum, a shoulder charge every week.
You can't even touch the toe of a kicker. Don't dare rough up Sam Walker. Seems you can belt a promising WT junior into submission without fear.