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He scored four tries on his NRL debut but Penrith rookie Charlie Staines may be squeezed out of the side should Dean Whare return from injury next week.

Penrith rookie Charlie Staines has set himself the goal of cementing a first-grade spot after his unforgettable NRL debut.

Staines announced himself as a star of the future on Saturday when he scored four tries in the Panthers' 56-24 demolition of Cronulla.

However, his stunning performance may only be a fleeting one with veteran Dean Whare a chance of returning from injury next week.

Staines was brought into the team after Whare was given an extra week to recover from a toe issue, while winger Brian To'o is out with an ankle fracture.

Brent Naden was initially named to replace To'o on the wing but moved to the centres after Whare's withdrawal, paving the way for Staines.

Asked whether Staines could be squeezed out of the side to face North Queensland coach Ivan Cleary said: "I haven't thought that far ahead actually.

"Dean's week to week at the moment, he's just got a bit of an injury we're trying to manage that one.

"I thought he was potentially good to play this week.

"But in the end he wasn't right.

"We'll see what happens."

Staines, who was primarily a fullback coming up through the juniors, said his memorable outing has only give him more motivation to remain in the team.

"Knowing what that feels like now, I want to be doing that every week," he said.

"I'm just going to keep trying to train hard at training and try and get that wing spot if I can."

A number of friends and family made the 10-hour round trip from Forbes to catch Staines' first-grade outing, and were rewarded with a front-row seat to his try-fest.

"They've been there since day one," he said.

"They always drove me everywhere for footy, wherever I needed to go.

"For them to be here tonight is amazing."