There's always a buzz when the Panthers first grade squad heads to Penrith Plaza for the traditional autograph signing session the week before a new NRL season begins.
But following an outstanding result by the team in 2014 when it finished in the top four and knocked out the Sydney Roosters after a one-point qualifying final win, captain Peter Wallace and his teammates were greeted at the plaza last Thursday night by a longer queue of fans with a greater sense of anticipation.
The Blaxland native and Panthers half told the Gazette the extra interest and support from fans was noticeable and was embraced by the players.
And in even better news for fans, Wallace said of all the things the team can take from its success in 2014 - including player depth, the talents of coach of the year Ivan Cleary, consistency and the rise of stars like Matt Moylan and Josh Mansour - the most important thing was belief.
"We got a lot of confidence out of what we did last season," Wallace said.
"A lot of the boys right through our squad got to experience playing in pressure games.
"Just knowing they can handle pressure situations in games is probably the biggest thing."
After showing impressive form for the Panthers as captain in the first half of last season, the 29-year-old was forced to watch the Panthers pave a road to the finals from the sidelines after he suffered a season-ending knee injury in August.
"The captaincy was a new experience for me and it meant I had extra responsibilities but I really got into it and enjoyed the role," Wallace said.
"When I was injured, my main role was to go and talk to the halves and players like Moylan at half-time about how we were going and tell them what I thought we were doing well or not so well - that kind of thing.
"I'm just happy I got the nod [from coach Ivan Cleary] to do it [be captain] again this year.
"My recovery's been good and I played a full game in our final pre-season trial match against the Eels and it was good to get through that with the body feeling really good.
"I'm ready to go for round one."
The Panthers start their season this Sunday at Penrith in what will be a mouth-watering clash against the Bulldogs, whom they lost to in last year's thrilling semi-final 18-12.
Wallace said while the team will treat it as just another game, his players won't be short of motivation against Canterbury.
"I think it has worked out pretty well for us playing them [the Bulldogs] first up and it's also good for the fans.
"They [Bulldogs] had one up on us in the finals, so obviously we want to win this match and play well to get our season off to a good start."
