Three weeks after beating the NRL benchmark, Penrith have found a new one.
After breaking camp for the week during representative round, the Panthers will look to reassert their status as premiership contenders when they host Manly on Saturday.
And Anthony Griffin's side will have plenty to prove having had their credentials questioned with a 26-point pummelling by the Sydney Roosters before the bye.
The defeat came just two weeks after doing the same number on pace-setters St George Illawarra.
"You need one of those throughout the season, just a real kick in the butt to reassure ourselves that we're not going as well as we think we are," Panthers forward Trent Merrin told AAP.
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"We needed to have a good look at ourselves, especially heading into the back end of the season."
The Panthers veteran believes it's imperative the team start marking themselves more rigorously as they look to take advantage of their current top-four status.
And it begins by taking the harsh lessons from their Roosters no-show.
"That game set the standard to where we need to be," Merrin said.
Coach Anthony Griffin's side took a giant hit last week following confirmation pack leader Reagan Campbell-Gillard would miss six weeks a broken jaw.
However his exit will be somewhat offset by the possible return of Waqa Blake (ankle), Moses Leota (pectoral) and Viliame Kikau (knee) to take on the Sea Eagles.
Blake hasn't played since round five, and will add some serious strike to their backline.
"He's done really well to get himself right, he's ticked all the boxes and working real hard," Merrin said.
"We all know what he's capable of doing on the field. It'll be another strike weapon in the team to have back, especially the back end of the season, to have a player like that come back."
The match will double as a farewell to recently retired veteran Peter Wallace.
