Coming into Round 8 just two points off the dominant leaders, Orange CYMS, the Panthers knew they had to make a big statement against the defending premiers.

Their massive 56-point haul, the same that the Dragons notched up the week before, was more than enough to do the job for the boys in black.

It was a sending off that dictated the opening ten minutes of the match, with Ben Thompson heading for the sheds and leaving the Dragons with just twelve men on the field to open the match.

Kade Barrow scored two while the Panthers had the numerical advantage, which set the foundations for his four-star haul across the match.

The roles reversed soon after however, as the travelling Bathurst squad had one of their own sent off for an incident in the ruck, and the Dragons tied the game off the back of a Jared Robinson try followed soon after by Jake Hellegers.

It was Bathurst that proved supreme when both sides kept their thirteen men on the field, as Barrow proved completely dominant down the Panthers’ left flank, and Siejka, Cassidy and Betts each added their own in the first half.

Heading into the sheds at half-time the scoreboard was unpleasant reading for the struggling Dragons, and the 18-point difference seemed difficult to overcome going into the second half.

Barrow stunned the Dragons for his third moments into the second period, but Ethen Butler clawed one back for the boys in red-and-white.

Long-ranged kicks from deep and wide stretching plays proved too much for the Dragon flanks however, and as Barrow pocketed his fourth, Gordon and Hewittt both found their way over the line, and Jake Betts notched a second for himself as Bathurst climbed too high to catch.

Although Hicks and Nick Harvey both managed to score in the tail end of the second half, it was only for statistics in the end, as the Panthers squeezed the defending premiers out of the game, and squeezed two competition points out of their trip to Glen Willow.

The defeat was dampened by Charlie Clayton disappearing into the sheds just fifteen minutes out from the final buzzer with a hand injury, however Hickman later confirmed it wouldn’t keep him off the field next weekend.

That will be a small comfort for the Dragons and their head coach, with Hickman’s side stretched to the limit with absences.

“We had sixteen guys out across the two grades,” Hickman lamented.

“You never want to play juniors so early, but we had Jake Hellegers out on the wing for his first game and he played well, so it’s good to see that and to get positives like that.

“It's good for the future because he’ll get confidence from that.”

The key at the moment, according to Hickman, is making sure the entire side can make it into the second half.

“We didn’t want to rush anyone back like Corin [Smith] or Hamish [Bryant],” he explained.

“The second half of the year we will have most of the guys back and we can take a look at where we are on the table, and assess the guys that we have and go from there.”

Last year the run for the finals came in the second half of the year, and although that is looming for the Mudgee side again in 2017, Hickman is still brimming with confidence.

According to the Dragons’ helmsman, the competition won’t be able to stop the full strength premiers.

“If we get our full side, I haven’t seen a side out there that we can’t beat,” he said.

“With the full contingent we can contend with anyone, it’s just getting them out there and playing.”

Next weekend sees another away trip for the Dragons, as they look to wrap up the first half of the season with a game against the Lithgow Workies.

From there, it’s the long weekend bye for the entire competition, and a chance for the Mudgee team to get their A-listers back into training and in their starting numbers.