'Stop laying the boot in': Gordon

Winger Michael Gordon has rubbished claims that Penrith lack the attacking armory to launch a genuine premiership tilt, insisting local rivals Parramatta will face a daunting task trying to contain them when they travel to the foot of the mountains tomorrow night.<br><br>The Panthers have come under fire for the number of tries scored from kicks this season, with 31 of their 71 four-pointers coming directly from the boot.<br><br>That statistic stood out like a sore thumb following last week’s shock 12-6 loss to the Warriors – a match that Penrith dominated in every facet bar the scoreboard – but Gordon said criticism of the side’s ability to post points was unwarranted.<br><br>“I think you only have to look at the Manly game to have your answer – I don’t think we scored a single try from a kick and we scored 40 points,” Gordon said of the Panthers’ 40-22 Round 16 win. <br><br>“I don’t think there is any problem there at all. <br><br>“We’ve proven that we can score points all season but last week was just one of those games – we didn’t turn up like we should have and the Warriors wanted it more on the day.”<br><br>Gordon said that while Penrith’s attack certainly misfired last Sunday, there was no reason to suspect it would happen again. And he pointed to this week’s rivals Parramatta as evidence of how quickly things can turn.<br><br>The Eels came under heavy fire after scoring just a single try in three consecutive games but hit back in stunning fashion in downing North Queensland 36-24 last Monday night.<br><br>“They looked like they were coming back into a bit of form, which isn’t great timing for us, but it goes to show what can happen,” Gordon said.<br><br>“Our attack last week was not what we train to do, it was all over the shop and that contributed to our defence being down.<br>&nbsp;<br>“We were down everywhere, really, but full credit to the Warriors – they just wanted it more than we did.<br><br>“It was just one of those games – I put it down to their performance more than ours.”<br><br>Asked about the Eels’ resurgence, Gordon said the sudden return to top form of NSW State of Origin team-mate Jarryd Hayne hadn’t escaped his attention.<br><br>“He is a class player so you’ve got to look out for him,” Gordon said. “But I think it’s about us doing the little things right to stop him. If we do our job he shouldn’t come into the game as much.<br><br>“We’ve been playing pretty solid all year so if we do our things right we should be able to account for them.”<br><br>While Gordon has proved to be one of Penrith’s great finds of recent years, his future remains uncertain. Originally tipped to be forced out next season due to salary cap pressures, the Panthers have since put an offer on the table but Gordon said he was no closer to making a decision following interest from a number of rival clubs.<br><br>“It’s still up in the air at the moment,” he said. “As far as I know they’ve come to me with an offer but it’s just a matter of both parties agreeing.<br><br>“I’m hopeful that I’m going to stay but I don’t know how it’s going to play out. I’m just going to keep biding my time until it all works out the way we want it to.”<br><br><br><b>Late NRL news:</b><br>•&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Bulldogs fullback Luke Patten will take the field against Sydney Roosters this weekend after recovering from the heavy concussion he suffered in making a try-saving tackle against Melbourne last Saturday.<br><br>•&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Cronulla are facing another battle against Manly this week with key players Trent Barrett, John Morris and Kade Snowden all in doubt through injury. Tim Smith, Scott Porter and Albert Kelly are all options in the halves but no decision has been made on who will come in.<br><br>•&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Dragons star Mark Gasnier is expected to start against South Sydney tonight after making his return from the bench against Penrith two weeks ago.