The freakish Nathan Cleary returned to fire a warning shot to the rest of the title contenders as opposite No. 7 Mitchell Moses suffered a sickening concussion which threatens his participation in the remainder of Parramatta’s finals campaign.
Penrith pin-up Cleary was nothing short of sensational as the defending premiers triumphed 27-8 over the Eels to book themselves a spot in the preliminary final.
Despite missing five weeks through suspension, Cleary made an immediate impact with his lethal right boot.
Just ask Eels winger Waqa Blake, who dropped no less than three floating bombs as they swirled through the air and would have had cold sweats when going to bed.
There were plenty of question marks over how Cleary’s fitness would hold up coming into the BlueBet Stadium clash.
Around the time he sped down field and threw the final pass for James Fisher-Harris to score in the second half, Andrew Johns said on the Nine commentary: “People doubting him, it was just ridiculous.”
Nathan Cleary and Dylan Edwards celebrate a Panthers try.Credit:Getty
If you want to know why the premiers can go back to back, look no further than their halfback. And the frightening thing is he will only be better for the run.
An elated Cleary said being at the foot of the mountains after full-time was “the best place to be in the world right now”.
“I just felt like I let a lot of people down after that last Parramatta game [when suspended] … I wanted to use that time to get better, and when I was back I wanted to be a better player for the team to repay the favour,” Cleary said.
“They have been killing it in the time I was outside. I knew they were working hard on the field. It’s a great team to be part of and very grateful.”
Brian To’o crashes over for a try.Credit:Getty
Co-captain Isaah Yeo said of Cleary’s first-up effort: “He was outstanding, wasn’t he? He has been knocking that glass in for the last five weeks. And I thought the way he kicked, his running game, particularly when they were getting fatigued, it was nice to have him out there.”
Cleary had variety in his kicking game, ran at the right times and refused to let any Parramatta player get past him in defence. It was a joy to watch.
The Panthers went to the break with a 7-6 lead courtesy of a Cleary field goal, and despite falling behind to a penalty goal early in the second half – Spencer Leniu exchanged some colourful words with Isaiah Papali’i after he collected him high – the home side clicked into gear.
Moses was ruled out with category-one symptoms when he went low on Viliame Kikau approaching the hour. He was out before he hit the ground and was given a standing ovation by both sets of fans when he was helped from the field.
He would not have made it back into the sheds when Cleary’s boot put Dylan Edwards over for a try.
The Eels will host the winner of the clash between Melbourne and Canberra next Friday night. Time will tell if Moses makes it back in time. The seven-day turnaround means it is not impossible.
Only the most rusted-on Eels fan will be convinced the blue and golds can still win next weekend without their halfback.
Coach Brad Arthur will be banking on his son Jake to get the job done if Moses is not there. Parramatta have bombed out in week two of the finals three weeks in a row, and will be desperate not to make it four.
What would have pleased Penrith coach Ivan Cleary was the desperation in defence, which continued in the final seconds when five Panthers stopped Maika Sivo in his tracks.
Penrith were too good. Cleary was the star. Moses hopefully won’t remember it.
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