Cleary set to face the ultimate test

Panthers coach Ivan Cleary has declared that his son is 100 per cent fit and won’t require any needles to deal with the pain on Friday night, but the biggest test will be during the game when Roosters star Angus Crichton runs at his left shoulder time and time again.

Nathan Cleary will return to the Penrith side for the qualifying final after missing three games with a shoulder injury he’s been dealing with since the pre-season.

It’s a huge inclusion for a Panthers side that looked clunky in attack last week against the Titans, with the champion halfback getting through a series of tests at training where he was asked to tackle forwards from the NSW Cup side.

But practise will only get you so far, with the Roosters likely to send plenty of traffic his way to put his shoulder to the ultimate test.

Crichton is one of the most destructive back-rowers in the game, but the Brad Fittler Medal winner says it would be foolish to throw away an entire game plan just to target Cleary, who has proven over the years how solid he is defensively.

Blues legend Andrew Johns savaged NSW for not going after Johnathan Thurston’s injured shoulder in an Origin game, while the Storm were guilty of trying to find an injured Cooper Cronk in the defensive line in the 2018 decider.

“I won’t be changing my game at all,” Crichton said ahead of the showdown with his World Cup winning teammate.

“It’s always my job to run at halfbacks and try to create a bit of ruck speed.

“Nathan is no slouch and he’s not going to be playing if he’s not fit. I’m expecting Nathan to be at his normal defensive best because he’s one of the best halves in the game and one of the best players in the comp.

“You’ve got to be aware of what’s going on in the game, but you don’t want to completely ruin your game plan and everything you’ve worked on for the whole year on the back of one player maybe being injured.”

Coach Cleary could have easily given his most important player the week off and hoped his side won and given Nathan an extra fortnight until their next game.

But he says the halfback didn’t need any extra time to recover and that he won’t require any needles for pain management before Friday’s clash.

“This was always the plan to play him this week,” he said, with Nathan hurting his shoulder in a tackle against the Storm last month.

“The stakes have moved up and we always want to pick our best team. He’s ready this week.

“His rehab has gone really well and he’s feeling really confident, so everything has gone to plan.

“Because he hasn’t been playing, we haven’t really been worrying about him.

“With him coming back in and being our chief playmaker and one of our captains, he’ll move the team around and give everyone a bit of direction and confidence.”

The winner of Friday’s game will earn a week off, with Penrith looking to make it 10 in a row against a Roosters side they beat back in round 4 in a game Cleary missed through injury.

“Every game is different, every season is different and there are different circumstances,” their coach said.

“For us, it’s more that we trust in our system and how we play. If we can do that then we feel like we can beat anyone.”