A Matt Moylan-inspired mini-comeback has convinced Anthony Griffin that a battling Penrith will fight their way out of their NRL downward spiral.

But Wayne Bennett wasn’t so sure after Brisbane held on for a 32-18 win at Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night – the Panthers’ fifth straight loss.

Pressure is building on Penrith coach Griffin after the early-season favourites slumped to a 2-7 season start.

In the NRL era just two of 41 teams have started a season with that tally and made the top eight. No side has made the top four from the Panthers’ position.

Penrith may need to win 10 of their remaining 15 matches to get to 28 competition points, usually the finals cut-off.

“At the moment the competition has its foot on our throat,” Griffin said.

“There’s no easy way out of it but we will get out of it.

“We are just finding a way to lose at the moment but that’s also part of learning how to win.”

But Griffin said he saw enough in their late charge to indicate the Panthers can reverse their fortunes and soon.

Down 28-0, Penrith suddenly came alive as fullback Moylan ran amok.

He set up a try then scored another as the Panthers piled on three four-pointers in just eight minutes to cut the deficit to 28-18 with seven minutes left.

Brisbane back-rower Matt Gillett’s try on the siren blew out the scoreline.

“We can carry something forward from that,” Griffin said of their fightback.

“The character they showed when we got our chance at the back end of the game, we will get a lot of confidence out of that.

“It came back to us in the final 20 minutes but we killed ourselves with soft points and errors up until then.

“We are just on the wrong leg at the moment, as a club and a team.”

Griffin may have been convinced but Bennett dismissed the notion that Penrith could gain confidence from their late rally.

“That’s a fallacy to be honest,” he said.

“You don’t want to be 28-0 down and then start to fight back – it’s about how you start.

“You are not going to get a great deal of confidence out of your last 15 minutes when the game was lost.”

Still, Bennett was thankful for the Panthers’ slow start after witnessing their comeback.

“They are an extremely talented team and they weren’t playing like they have the talent they have got,” he said.

“Then all of a sudden they got a bit of luck and momentum and it was all happening for them.

“I am pleased they started late.”