Jarome Luai has declared he wants to take on the Cowboys next week as speculation swirls that the Panthers could rest the bulk of their squad for the final regular season game in Townsville.
The Panthers have already wrapped up their second minor premiership in three years and there’s no need to risk injuries so close to the finals, but Luai, who returned on Friday night after missing four games with a knee injury, wants to play.
Coach Ivan Cleary may not let him, but at least the five-eighth is keen.
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“I want to play every week. If the body is right I’m putting my hand up to play,” he said.
“I’ll be back in ‘Iv’s’ office this week letting him know I’m sweet to play. I’m sure the coach has got a plan so we’ll see what happens.”
What the Panthers do next week could come down to what happens in reserve grade on Saturday with the Panthers pushing for the minor premiership and a week off for the first round of the finals.
They’ve got the bye this week and need the third-placed Bulldogs to knock off the ladder-leading Jets to sneak up into first spot.
If that happens then Cleary could call up as many players as he wanted from the NSW Cup squad knowing they’re not needed for a finals game in their competition.
“I’ve got a few plans, but we’ll just see how everyone pulls up,” Cleary said, with the Panthers set to fly everyone back from Townsville on Saturday night on a chartered flight.
“We’ve been in a good position for a while. We’ll sleep on it and see how everyone pulls up. Then we’ll work out what we’ll do.
“I’ve never been one to necessarily rest people, but every situation is different and every year is different. There are so many factors that go into it.”
Luai was at his scheming best in the 46-12 demolition of the Warriors in what was an important hit out for him before the finals.
The representative five-eighth wasn’t expected back for another week but returned early for the second year in a row after a similar knee injury kept him out of the third Origin game last year.
“I felt really good, I was really confident throughout the week and got a lot of reps and the boys tested me pretty hard at training and I was really confident I could get through the game,” Luai said.
“It was worse [than last year]. I completely tore it this time so I wasn’t nervous.
“My missus was cooking me nice food at home so that might’ve helped.
“I’m a pretty quick healer so grateful to get back on the field and have a game with the boys.
“I’m fresh, I took it as a bit of a blessing in disguise that I got a couple of weeks off. The body was a bit battered but very grateful going into the finals.”
In a warning to the rest of the competition, Luai says he and suspended halves partner Nathan Cleary won’t be rusty when the finals roll around even though they haven’t played together since Round 19.
“We’ve done a lot of reps, just me and him last week,” he said.
“There aren’t many boys in rehab so we spent a bit of time together on the field just chatting about things.
“People take it as a negative you’re out for a couple of weeks but we’re feeling really good coming into the finals.”
