Penrith’s pursuit of a fourth straight NRL premiership has taken a hit after star halfback Nathan Cleary injured his left shoulder during their 24-22 loss to Melbourne. Cleary was hurt following a tackle by Storm forwards Trent Loiero and Josh King when the game was tied at 22-22 in the final 15 minutes on Thursday night in Penrith.
Coach Ivan Cleary mentioned that his son had aggravated a pre-existing injury from the pre-season, though the severity of the issue remains unclear. “I’m concerned,” he admitted.
“It was bad enough for him to come off. We’ll organise the scans tomorrow, until we get those, we’ll be in a better position to see our way forward.”
With his arm apparently in a sling, Cleary watched from the sidelines as the Storm secured a victory in a thrilling contest that lived up to its hype as one of the season’s best match-ups. Nick Meaney kicked the decisive penalty goal with eight minutes remaining after Panthers prop James Fisher-Harris was penalized for a late hit on Jahrome Hughes.
Cleary has faced multiple injury setbacks during the Panthers’ title run, including a two-month absence due to a hamstring injury, a right shoulder injury in 2021, and a suspension in 2022. However, navigating the finals without Cleary would present a new and greater challenge for the Panthers, who might have to rely on Daine Laurie or Jack Cole to step into the halves alongside Jarome Luai.
Although Cleary was having a relatively quiet game before the injury, he had been exceptional since returning from his previous injury, helping Penrith solidify their position as premiership favorites over the past month.
Thursday’s win puts the Storm two games clear at the top of the NRL ladder and virtually assures them the minor premiership with three rounds remaining.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy said the result was “really pleasing” despite a slow start.
“We lost a bit of control of the game and our discipline and our defence fell off a bit. Other than that, I thought our guys were tremendous,” he said.
Even with Cleary on the field, the Panthers were far from their brilliant best, giving up a double digit lead for the third time in five games as they fell behind 10-0 early.
“I just think the tries they scored I was disappointed with every one of them,” said coach Cleary. “A try off a scrum, two on last plays where I just don’t think we were urgent enough.”
Cleary conceded the shoulder-charge penalty that set Melbourne up to extend their lead with a try from Eliesa Katoa and also mishandled a pass as Penrith attempted to score their first points.
Despite this, Panthers co-captain Isaah Yeo had an outstanding game. He set up Penrith’s first try by sending Lindsay Smith through a gap on the right. Yeo was also instrumental in giving the Panthers their first lead of the night, breaking down the left edge before Casey McLean’s kick allowed Dylan Edwards to score in the second half.
The Panthers seemed ready to take control of the match after McLean dived over for a try just minutes after Asofa-Solomona was sin-binned and with Munster off the field for a head injury assessment.
But Tyran Wishart skipped past Penrith’s Trent Toelau to level the scores with 20 minutes to play in a leaked try coach Cleary called the “worst one I’ve seen in five years”.