Penrith coach Ivan Cleary admits he has been overwhelmed by emotion at the thought that his premiership-winning team is about to be broken up.
The Panthers produced what he believes was the best opening half of football of his tenure, an 18-0 advantage against a Parramatta team that had beaten them twice this season. However, Cleary’s men were never troubled and the scoreline flattered the Eels after they scored two late tries.
The Panthers will farewell star players Apisai Koroisau and Viliame Kikau, while assistant coaches Andrew Webster and Cameron Ciraldo will also move on. Cleary admitted he was concerned they may not receive a fitting farewell before the decider.
“It’s just fun. So proud, excited,” Cleary said of his emotions post-match.
“It’s hard to put it into words. It’s definitely been an emotional 24 hours, I got a bit emotional yesterday. I don’t even know why.
“I think it’s because of this moment in time. This team won’t stay together, it’s just such a great opportunity. You just want it to go well on the big night and I couldn’t have asked for anything more, the boys were unbelievable …
Nathan and Ivan Cleary celebrate another grand final win.Credit:Getty
“It’s very sad that players and coaching staff won’t be together again.”
The Panthers have produced many complete performances over the past three years, but Cleary said the opening-half performance, given the stakes, was as good as any.
“Considering everything on the line [it was],” he said. “Honestly, that was a dream come true in the first half, I just sat back and watched the boys go to work. They know how to play, we’ve worked out over the grand finals over the last couple of years, we’ve learnt a bit.
“The boys are unbelievable.”
Cleary’s son, star halfback Nathan Cleary, added: “Pretty crazy. I thought the first half was the best 40 minutes we’ve put together over that three-year period, just in terms of what we wanted to do.
“It felt really dominant. We bombed a few chances as well. I just thought what we were doing, moving from one play to the next, was good to be a part of.”
The Panthers are such a well-oiled machine that Ivan Cleary said he couldn’t remember walking off the training paddock disappointed with what he saw.
“I can’t even think of a training session where they came off and I wasn’t happy,” he said.
“They leave their egos at the door.”
Clive Churchill medallist Dylan Edwards produced a covering tackle on Bailey Simonsson that evoked comparisons to the classic tackle of Scott Sattler in Penrith’s 2003 grand final win.
“It’s a bit surreal at the moment,” Edwards said.
“It’s a credit to the rest of the team, they make my job incredibly easy. I’m lucky to be a part of this team.
“These are my brothers and I like going to work with them each week.
“The [medal] feels nice. It’s been a bit of a crazy year and it’s nice to get this.”
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