Nathan Cleary has been declared Penrith’s greatest halfback after leading the club to back-to-back premierships.
Cleary’s kicking game controlled the grand final, while he also came up with some big tackles in the 28-12 win over the Eels.
Legendary halfback Andrew Johns said in commentary for Channel 9 that after Sunday’s performance, Cleary “goes past Greg Alexander” in terms of Penrith’s best-ever No.7s.
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Fox League’s Michael Ennis was in awe of 24-year-old Cleary’s performance in the decider and dared to dream of what he will achieve by the time he’s 30-years old.
“He’s awesome,” Ennis said.
“I’ve loved and watched this game for a long, long time and he’s as good as I’ve seen. He’s so calm and composed, yet so willing to take on moments and back himself.
“Defensively tonight, I thought that that’s been overshadowed, just how good he was. There were some cracking shots under the ball and his kicking game was just immaculate — he’s got it all.
“At 24-years of age, he’s an absolute beauty.
“But I don’t think you can put a limit on what he’s going to achieve. The only thing that’s going to hold him back is injuries.
“If they keep the key personnel at Penrith and continue like Melbourne did for such a long time, just to keep moving and shaking men around them and developing underneath… Gosh, what could be on his CV at 30.”
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Meanwhile, Cooper Cronk — a five-time Dally M Halfback of the Year — believes Cleary’s success comes down to the amount of work he puts into his game.
Cronk also pinpointed the moment that he sensed Cleary’s game would go to another level.
“It’s all about time and time is the amount of moments and work you’re willing to put in. Some people may take, five, eight or 10 years to work out those things, but Nathan seems to be a guy that works overtime so he’s brought it forward to 24, 25,” he said.
“I look back at my career at 24, 25 — I wasn’t even in the same postcode as Nathan. He’s doing things that I never even thought about doing at that age.
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“This is the biggest rap I can give Nathan — as soon as he got sent off against Parramatta in Round 20 (and suspended for five games), I sat there and thought ‘I think this kid is going to scheme himself to a premiership here.’ He’s not going to sit on a couch, he’s going to be out on field working, watching film, dissecting opposition, (thinking) ‘I don’t know who I’m going to play, but I’m going to be ready.’
“That first week of the finals, the way that he tore apart Parramatta in the second half, showed me this kid’s got it in spades.
“An outstanding performance. I saw Nathan doing that in the finals series, because I just knew he’s the type of kid that isn’t sitting on the couch waiting, he was going to work his way through it and be ready.”
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