Last year we saw a highly competitive NRL season, one of the best that I can remember. A large portion of that was thanks to any team being able to beat any team on their day and they style of play throughout the whole NRL allowed teams to have some fun and play attacking footy. But through all that, there was still a group of teams who sat pretty in their leather lay-z-boys, chilling, reclining, looking down on the rest of the NRL.

The NRL's Upper Echelon is a rather exclusive club, you've got to show the right signs on a consistent basis to earn membership to this gang of top dogs. With that being said, I'm going to get this out of the way, teams like the Warriors or the Storm, or even the Broncos don't have a membership. They definitely have the ability to win the whole damn thing, but they will do so without an Upper Echelon membership.

The Canterbury Bulldogs, the team that always seem to be in the news thanks to their ability to splash the cash on pretty much who ever they want, but at the same time, they fly under the radar. We saw last season that Des Hasler's doesn't really give two hoot's about the regular season, as long as they're in the top 8, I think Des is happy as he's got full confidence in his coaching ability and his players to make waves in the finals.

That's a staple of the Upper Echelon, the coaches. They're all excellent coaches and for me this is epitomised by Hasler as he's always got a few tricks up his sleeve. The Doggies will be able to call on Josh Reynolds and Trent Hodkinson to hold the fort in the play making department, but I'm not as high on these two as many others are. I think they fit exactly what the Doggies need though as they have a forward pack that is not only the biggest, but they're rugged and skillful. 

Hopefully we see much more of Sam Kasiano this year as he, in partnership with James Graham could be the best ball playing props in the NRL. The Dogs don't relinquish any muscle with their ball playing though and a forward pack of Kasiano, Graham, Aiden Tolman, Frank Pritchard, David Klemmer, Greg Eastwood and young Lloyd Perrett is super duper dangerous.

The thing about the Dogs that really impresses me is their recruitment. They've lost Michael Ennis, Dale Finucane and Mitch Brown, but have recruited wisely to plug those holes. Michael Lichaa came with a bit of a price tag, but with good reason and he should offer some excitement out of dummy half which in combination with the razzle dazzle forward play od the Doggies, could be freakish. Brett Morris is a pretty handy replacement for Mitch Brown isn't he? While Curtis Rona has been picked up from the Cowboys and he's a good young winger. They may not have bagged a direct replacement for Finucane, but they didn't really need one as their forward stocks are the healthiest in the NRL.

The Bulldogs will spend much of this season firmly established in the top 8 but they might not sit near the top of the ladder. That doesn't matter, they're good enough to stay in the top 8 without really breaking a sweat and when it's time to press down on that clutch, they'll be in the mix.

The Penrith Panthers weren't in the Upper Echelon last season, but by season's end, they were all up in the grill of the Upper Echelon's door man. They showed what they can do, what they're capable of and their style of play last season, but that all came about with half their top squad out injured which is a bit of a worry for the rest of the NRL.

Much like the Dogs, the Panthers have a halves pairing who are tasked with a pretty simple task of just running the show. They give the ball to the right guy at the right time and get their team down the right end of the field, which is pretty much up the alley of Jamie Soward and Peter Wallace. A guy like Soward can offer much more when he's playing off the front foot and full of confidence, but these two lads do their core roles very well.

What these two lack in attacking flair is more than made up for thanks to Matt Moylan. Moylan is one of the best young players in the NRL and his ability to offer classic fullback play as well as stepping in to the line and serving up passes and kicks that should make any half jealous, ensures that the Panthers can attack from multiple angles.

With the Panthers sneering Apisai Koroisau from the Rabbitohs, they have two livewire dummy halves who will cause absolute mayhem around the ruck. If Moylan can sniff around the play the ball and support these quick footed hookers, he'll be presented many opportunities and all these lads form an impressive spine.

The forward pack for the Panthers is interesting. It's not as loaded as some of the others around the NRL, but they do what is required not only in terms of holding their own through the middle but also in terms of serving up a bit of play making. Nigel Plum, Sam McKendry, Brent Kite, Adam Docker and Elijah Taylor will all do exactly what Ivan Cleary asks of them, while Tyrone Peachey, Lewis Brown, Sika Manu, Bryce Cartwright and new recruit Tupou Sopoaga will offer some x factor on the edges.

The Panthers will also have one of the best groups of outside backs in the NRL with a starting crew of Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Jamal Idris, Dean Whare and Josh Mansour likely to cause mayhem. These lads are all able to create their own chances, but they can also add some spice to chances created inside of them. I'm not sure how you're going to stop the Panthers because if you load up and target one area or one player, they can just switch the style up and let the money pile up so to speak. I love teams who have balance, each side of the field is equally as talented and that's what the Panthers have.

Ivan Cleary has shown that he deserves to be an Upper Echelon coach, a celebrated position indeed. Last season he had the Panthers doing exactly what was asked, not only on attack but also in defence and with a bit more fire power this season, I reckon the Panthers won't be kicked out of the Upper Echelon after one season.