The NRL's most carefree attack is also its most cunning with the competition's dark horse more likely than any of its 15 rivals to run the ball on the last tackle to avoid the risk of gifting opposition sides seven-tackle sets.

In the surest sign yet Griffin intends to continue to keep the shackles off his young playmakers for the rest of the finals, the Panthers will persevere with a high-risk, high-reward running game in the opposition's quarter against the Raiders on Saturday night.

Statistics compiled by Champion Data show the Panthers are the NRL side most likely to probe the defensive line on the final play and not revert to a kick in order to pin their rivals down at their own end.

They handed the ball over a six times against the Bulldogs in their 28-12 elimination final win – including three sets in a row – the biggest number recorded by any team in a single game this year.

It took their season total to 38, far more than any other side in 2016, with the Bulldogs (30) the next outfit most likely to use the tactic.

Griffin's shrewd ploy to make the most of his jet-heeled outside backs and relieve the pressure on young halves Nathan Cleary and Bryce Cartwright is a calculated one, paving the way for a number of scintillating tries against Canterbury's tiring pack at Allianz Stadium.

Asked about his side being captured in possession on the last tackle, Griffin said: "It's just the way the game flows sometimes. I'd much prefer us at times to finish the set off the way we want to finish it off.

"There is no rule that says you have to kick it on the last play. So if they're comfortable and want another shot at them it's up to them."

Having relied in recent years on the steady boot of Jamie Soward, who was granted a mid-season release, the Panthers' attack has been overhauled by Griffin during the second half of the season.

And its won an endorsement from one of the club's favourite sons Brad Fittler, who likes what he is seeing on and off the field.

"​They actually do that [running the ball on the last] very well and it's very hard to defend when you get it right," Fittler said. "And the important thing is, they've been defending better on the back of it.

"That's part of the enjoyment and love for the game you don't usually see and they are so easy to get on with."

The composure of Griffin's rapidly maturing side has been evident with its calculated offence, which is designed to hem its opponents into the corners with a running rather than kicking game.

But despite being steered around the park by Cleary, 18, and Cartwright, 21, the Panthers won't be breaking any age records if Griffin's side can ride a six-game winning streak to the club's first title since 2003.

The Bulldogs' 2004 vintage (24.07) and the Rabbitohs' 2014 drought-breakers (24.29) had a younger average age than the Panthers, whose squad that stunned the Bulldogs levelled out at 24.42 on Sunday.