Yeo says Panthers on red alert for Green Machine

Isaah Yeo knows the feeling of causing chaos in the final month of the regular season after Penrith rallied last year to claw their way into the Telstra Premiership finals.

And while the Panthers are in a more comfortable position on the ladder in 2018 and eyeing a top-four finish, Canberra are out to spoil the party and salvage what's left of their season.

The Raiders will return to the foot of the mountains for just the first time since 2015 and look to halt any momentum the Panthers hope to build.

Penrith and Canberra have battled out some heated clashes in previous years and Yeo expected a bounce-back from Ricky Stuart's men after their heavy loss to Melbourne.

"We were in that situation the week before, it's never nice to get points put on you and the first thing you want to do is get back on the paddock and try to rectify it," Yeo told pan66.com.

"They'll be bouncing back and internally firing. We're expecting a very big physical forward pack, they've got some real strike powers.

"They're looking to knock teams off now and disrupt their finals runs by finishing their seasons. I'm expecting nothing less this weekend."

Yeo was on hand for a special presentation at the club's training headquarters on Friday with the club announcing a $200,000 donation to the Australian drought appeal.

Born and bred in Dubbo, Yeo has felt the effects on a personal level and urged Australians to take greater notice of the concerns coming out of country and rural areas.

"It's very much needed right now out there. It's dry and fingers crossed for rain sooner rather than later," Yeo said.

"I've got a few aunts and uncles on the farm, that's most of their livelihood. They're trying to keep as upbeat as possible considering the circumstances.

"There comes a point where you can't keep funnelling your money in and everything dries up. For some family and friends, September rolls around and they're in trouble."

Meanwhile, Panthers coach Anthony Griffin has confirmed Reagan Campbell-Gillard will make his way into the 17 for Sunday's clash after being cleared for a return.

After admitting he may need to assess the way he plays the game earlier in the week, Griffin hoped Campbell-Gillard wouldn't change his current attacking style in fear of future injuries.

"It's a collision sport, he's a front-rower and the reason he's been able to progress so quickly over the last couple of years is the courage and aggressive way he plays," Griffin said.

"We'll help him with the details and technique of that. If he shies away from being aggressive as a front rower, that's not going to help him.

"It's good to have him back playing. He's been out for eight weeks so we need to get some football into him but I'm sure he'll hit the ground running."

Griffin remained coy on the final make-up of the side with Tyrone May or Jack Hetherington likely options to drop out of the final 17-man team.