It's not so undisputed anymore.
They may be the best team of the NRL era, but Penrith can't claim to be world-beaters after Wigan dramatically denied Tylan Maye's effort in the final play of the match and secured a 16-12 World Club Challenge victory.
May looked to have stolen the win at the death, but the video referee blocked the effort, giving the Warriors their fifth ICC World Cup title – equaling the record alongside the Sydney Roosters.
In front of a raucous crowd of 24,091 at DW Stadium, the Panthers twice came from behind to steal the lead but were unable to come back a third time against a team that had all the answers when it mattered.
Even the iceman in Nathan Cleary couldn't overcome the cold temperatures and even colder reception, as he made one particular attempt midway through the second half when he miscued the ball off Isaah Yeo with the try-line signal.
Instead, it was Jayfield who got the job done, sprinting May over just short of the try line in the 69th minute in a moment ironically reminiscent of Scott Sattler's famous try for Penrith in the 2003 NRL decider.
The defeat left the Cheetahs 0-4 in the World Club Challenge and without the trophy that had eluded them during their three-year reign as premiers of the Southern Hemisphere.
A rude wake-up call
The reason may have been the rude wake-up call some locals had tried to give them earlier in the day, when fireworks were set off outside their Manchester hotel in the early hours of the morning.
Or maybe it was because it was their first real hit of the season.
But the Panthers' attack was shaken for large parts of the game, uncharacteristically suffering final tackles four times in the first 20 minutes, twice at the hands of youngster Jack Cole.
At one point, Cleary passed to James Fisher-Harris to make the final playing decision.
But the champion No.7 eventually recovered, one of his cross kicks finding Mitch Kenny, who found his centre-back for the first points to settle his nerves.
French connection
It has looked like a potential problem for the Panthers since their arrival in the UK, with defender Stephen Crichton departing and No. 5 Jarome Luai out injured.
Then Scott Sorensen was scratched in midweek as he failed to overcome a problem with his leg.
That left the Panthers with a new looking left edge in Luke Garner, Cole and May, and Bevan French took full advantage with two brilliant first-half saves.
One cut two goals to find Abbas Meski for the opening points of the contest, before the former Parramatta player backed him up with another slot to set up his second try for Cruz Leeming.
In the year the 28-year-old's contract expires, clubs could line up for the reigning man of steel, who has transformed from a goalscoring talent into a versatile playmaker.
Not very sunny days
Penrith will nervously await scans on winger Sonja Torova, who appeared to suffer an injury to her right leg after attempting a long kick from Cleary in the second half.
The sight of this year's Rookie of the Year limping off the field was eerily similar to teammate Maye, who suffered an ACL injury in the corresponding game last year that ended his season.
His injury may force coach Ivan Cleary to rely on his depth for the season opener against Melbourne in two weeks, including Canterbury's Paul Alamoti or youngster Jesse McLean.
Originally published as World Club Challenge: Penrith Panthers lose controversial match against Wigan
