Former Brisbane coach Anthony Griffin is the new man in charge at the Penrith Panthers with the club announcing a three-year deal which will see Griffin at the foot of the mountains till at lease the end of 2018.

“Anthony Griffin was our first choice to be head coach at the Panthers for the next three seasons,” Penrith GM Phil Gould said.

“Understand that we did not advertise this position. We did not accept applications and we interviewed no other candidate. We are delighted he has accepted our invitation to be the new head coach at our club.

“Anthony’s experience, in particular his background in developing elite junior talent through to NRL level, made him the perfect fit for this club. We are certain he is the man to take advantage of the tremendous foundations established by our previous head coach Ivan Cleary.

“Anthony’s previous club the Brisbane Broncos have long been considered the benchmark of professional rugby league worldwide. The references we received from the Broncos organisation regarding Anthony’s character, work ethic, knowledge and love for the game were nothing short of impeccable. This merely confirmed in our own minds that Anthony is a valuable acquisition for Panthers.”