Penrith only signed Paul Alamoti to a one-year deal last year but the centre showed them why he should be extended as the premiers outlasted a spirited Wests Tigers 22-6 in Bathurst on Saturday.

Alamoti was on debut for the Panthers after Taylan May pulled out with personal issues and he clearly went out to impress coach Ivan Cleary.

The ex-Bulldogs back was dangerous all game and when up 10-6 in the 63rd minute his threatening play shone when he sliced the Tigers up to stop Penrith fans sweating.

Alamoti ran for 121m but he was also excellent defensively, making several important tackles to stop the Tigers when they looked dangerous.

It was a slugfest of a game and the scoreline didn’t reflect the closeness of the match as the Tigers tried as hard as the Panthers but just lacked polish at crucial times.

Penrith will be looking forward to Nathan Cleary’s probable return next week.

Had Cleary been playing the game couldn’t been over at halftime given Penrith completed its first 19 sets and ended the first half with a 91 per cent completion rate.

CRUCIAL EARLY CALL

Pre-game, Tigers coach Benji Marshall challenged his forwards to put plenty of energy into the opening 10 minutes and they responded.

The Tigers were on top early when John Bateman sent winger Junior Tupou over in the eighth minute.

It looked like the Tigers were about to go further ahead until a controversial call cruelled them.

Brad Schneider was lucky not to be sin binned when his ankle tap took down Justin Olam, who was without the ball, in a try scoring situation.

Olam likely would’ve scored had he not been ankle tapped and the Tigers may have been 12-0 up.

“How’s that not a sin bin?” said Fox League commentator Michael Ennis.

“It’s a professional foul. Justin didn’t even have the ball. It had to be a sin bin.”

It was a momentum changer as Penrith went on to take control of the opening half and put on two tries of their own to lead 10-6 at the break.

The loss of Junior Tupou shortly before halftime with a foot ligament injury was a big blow to the Tigers given he had ran for 110m with two line breaks and three tackle breaks to scare the defending premiers.

Despite the loss, the Tigers showed they’re tougher under Marshall this season and the inclusion of Jarome Luai at halfback next year will complement a very good spine.

EDWARDS WORRY

Dylan Edwards went off late with a suspected leg injury but Cleary said it was just a precaution and his fullback felt fine.

If he’s out of action it will be a huge blow to the defending premiers.

Edwards always provides top stats on paper and he ran for 211m on Saturday.

But it’s the way he organises Penrith’s famed defence that’s equally important.

They need him as much as Cleary, Yeo and Fisher-Harris.

Aidan Sezer clipped the kicking leg of Schneider early in the game and was placed on report.

It looks like he might spend some time on the sidelines given what we’ve seen so far this season.