Overview
- Penrith confirmed the shock change on Sunday by naming Blaize Talagi at centre and dropping Luke Garner from the final 17, a late selection that was not foreshadowed in earlier team trims.
- The outcome of the qualifying final will give the winner a home preliminary final and leave the loser to face the Cronulla Sharks in a sudden-death semifinal next week.
- The Roosters will be without halfback Sam Walker and lost Angus Crichton to foot surgery, while Egan Butcher failed a head-injury assessment and enters an 11-day concussion stand-down that makes him unavailable for the next match.
- The NRL published Week 2 fixtures with the Roosters hosting Cronulla on Saturday and the Warriors facing the Knights on Sunday, and it confirmed the Warriors-Knights match will be moved to Eden Park in Auckland.
- Talagi's promotion was notable because he had been pulled from Penrith's NSW Cup semi and had fallen out of favour, so the selection is a tactical gamble that reshapes match matchups and may force quick changes to squads if injuries or concussion rulings affect availability.