They may not have had much luck but Penrith only have themselves to blame for their disastrous NRL season start, Panthers great Brad Fittler says.
NSW coach Fittler claimed the Panthers showed "not much resilience" and hinted that Penrith's incumbent Blues halves James Maloney and Nathan Cleary were on the State of Origin outer.
Penrith coach Ivan Cleary is reeling after counting the cost of Saturday's 30-12 loss to Canberra - their fourth straight defeat.
Their title hopes already appear over after slumping to a 2-6 record, with no team going on to win the premiership after dropping six of their first eight games.
Only two teams -- South Sydney in 1955 and Wests Tigers in 2005 -- have gone on to claim the trophy after starting 3-5.
Yet it could still get worse for Cleary's hapless Panthers.
Isaah Yeo (dislocated shoulder) and Viliame Kikau (ankle) are set for lengthy stints on the sidelines while winger Malakai Watene-Zelezniak (rib) also went down against the Raiders.
And prized playmaker James Maloney (grade one dangerous throw, grade one dangerous contact) and bench forward Liam Martin (grade one dangerous throw) face suspension after being charged on Sunday.
But Fittler wasn't in the mood to offer excuses for Penrith after watching them slump to second-last on the ladder.
The Panthers made more metres than the Raiders (1491m-1332m), more runs (168-159), more tackle breaks (31-28) and had the most possession (56 per cent to 44).
However, Fittler said Penrith were never going to win by completing their sets at just 66 per cent, finishing just 27 of 41 against Canberra.
"They are making it so hard for themselves to be in the game," Fittler told Nine Network.
"They only have themselves to blame at the moment.
"I don't think they are gone (for the season) but they are going to have to do what sides like Cronulla had to do and bring some young blokes through - they have to blood some blokes."
Fittler said the poor completion rate reflected badly on the Panthers' halves and Blues incumbents Maloney and Nathan Cleary.
"They were disappointing. Completing at 60 odd per cent says a lot more than just dropping the ball, it says you are not organised," he said.
"No one really knows what direction they are going.
"There is not much resilience out at Penrith at the moment."
Former NSW captain Paul Gallen admitted time was running out for the Panthers halves to stay in Blues contention, claiming Penrith would struggle further without influential forward Kikau.
"I have been a massive advocate of keeping the halves together in the NSW side but there are three games to go (before Origin I side picked) - they are going to have to turn the corner real quick," he said.
"But they will need to find something fast because Kikau is everything to them."
