Has anyone ever made premierships look as easy as the all-conquering Panthers?

Here was a bloke pitched into what shaped as one of the great grand final yarns... and it was done and dusted by the time he got the interchange card.

The club's designated wrecking ball, recalled after months in the wilderness just to wreak havoc, was sideline ready to head into fray right as Scott Sorenson crossed for the Panthers third try.

Nathan Cleary converted for 18-0 and it was game over after 30 minutes. In fairness, it never looked like going any other way, the final 28-12 scoreline not doing justice to the Panthers dominance

For all the pre-match hype around his menacing floating bombs, it was Nathan Cleary's simple punch in behind Clint Gutherson that exposed the first cracks.

The vaunted Eels big man took an eternity to get back behind the ball. The ensuing kick chase was lax and let Dylan Edwards slide Brian To'o into space.

Read more: Penrith win back-to-back NRL premierships with 28-12 win over Parramatta

They were among the host of small moments around the Panthers opening two tries, the first to Stephen Crichton 10 minutes in and To'o seven minutes later.

An attempted short dropout from Eels skipper Clint Gutherson four minutes later seemed tacit admission his side couldn't withstand the pressure of another set.

Perhaps giving up the gimme two points in front of the posts was more palatable than the six that seemed inevitable. It proved that way when Sorenson grabbed the Panthers third for an 18-0 lead 11 minutes before the break.

From there, you'd have got longer odds on a Winx victory than a second straight premiership for the mountain men.

When To'o crossed for his second just after halftime, the fans had seen enough. One even invaded the pitch and tried to start packing up the field early.

When Clive Churchill Medalist Dylan Edwards produced a homage to 2003 premiership hero Scott Sattler on a runaway Bailey Simmonson, allowing Charlie Staines to cross from the next set, the blue and gold jumpers started heading for the exits.

They missed tries to Clint Gutherson and Jake Arthur in the final four minutes, but there were no doubt some wishing they'd missed the preceding 76.

The questions turned to whether any side in recent times has done it better than these Panthers. The Storm and Roosters juggernauts, that now seem on the wane, won grand finals convincingly.

The latter managed the four-minute mile of the NRL era in going back-to-back in 2018-19. There was certainly shades of the Roosters triumph over the Storm in 2018 in Sunday's clash.

Have either done it with the ease the Panthers did this time around? From start to finish?

They admittedly limped over the line last season carrying a host of injuries. This time they did it fresh enough to seemingly go another 80 if they needed. On form on Sunday, they'd probably only need another 30-minute blitz to take it away from any opposition.

Who can deny them a three-peat - even with Api Koroisau and Viliame Kikau and assistant coaches Cameron Ciraldo and Andrew Webster moving on - is not readily apparent ahead of next season.

Coach Ivan Cleary bluntly stated he didn't "give a shit" about next year, but he admitted there was some unique emotions ahead of kickoff given that - for all the inevitable talk of dynasties - it is the end of the road for the group as it took the park.

"I'm so proud, excited, it's hard to put into words," Cleary said.

"It's been an emotional 24 hours, I got a bit emotional yesterday, I don't even know why. I think it's because this moment in time, this team won't stay together, it was such a great opportunity and such an amazing season.

"It just came over me. I just wanted it to go well on the biggest night and I honestly couldn't have asked for anything more, the boys were unbelievable. Considering we had everything on the line, it was a dream come true that first half. I just sat back and watched the boys go to work.

"They know how to play. I think in the grand finals we've played over the last couple of years I think we've learned a fair bit. We put that to good use, not just tonight but during the week.

"The boys nailed every session, which they've done most of the year. I can't even think of a session where I've come off the field and I wasn't happy. They're just so consistent, they leave their egos at the door and just do everything for the team. Good things happen.

"It's very sad this year that in our team, not just players but coaching staff will never be together again... but I don't think we're going to be sad tonight. I think we're going to be happy, it's been an unbelievable season for our club."

Where the Eels go from here is a trickier question. For all the talk of windows being open, closed, ajar, it will take a huge effort to get back to another decider with some of the cattle departing. The loss was Reed Mahoney, Isaiah Papa'ali and Marata Niukore's last in the blue and gold.

Brad Arthur has certainly silenced critics in steering his side to a big dance but, in the wash-up to a grand final loss, silence can be the biggest tormentor of them all.

"They're a very good team, they played very well that first half, they played too fast for us," Arthur said post-game.

"We're disappointed but right now's not the time to try and review that or dissect that game, we were just beaten by a better team. They were too good for us tonight.

"It was a tough road to get here, maybe the tough road took its toll on us but, at the end of the day, once we turn up today and we've got the 80 minutes of a lifetime, we can't be looking for excuses. We were just beaten by a better team.

"We've played them a couple of time this year and had a couple of close results, we got two victories, but when it mattered today we weren't good enough."

It's hard to see a different result had any other side taken the park against the Panthers, but it's the Eels who've arguably taken the biggest strides in shrugging off week-one finals wobbles to get within reach of the ultimate prize.

"It's a big achievement," Arthur said. "We're not just putting the cue in the rack and saying we're content with that, but I just want to focus on how proud I am of the guys as individuals and as men.

"The boys rallied, took control of it and made sure they turned up with the right mentality and attitude, they went after the [finals] games. That bit there at the end [tonight] showed the resilience we've seen in the team.

"After every bad performance or loss this year we've bounced back. We had to scramble and fight out backsides off to get to this position last week.

"We didn't throw the towel in and we kept trying to salvage as much as we could out of the game even though the result was gone."

We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on the Illawarra Mercury website.

Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. Sign up for a subscription here.