Ivan Cleary's beautiful act, call divides greats: Good, bad and ugly of NRL round 25

😃 The good: Ivan Cleary's brilliant act amid tragedy

😔 The bad: Dolphins destined to finish in bottom four

😡 The ugly: NRL world divided over Reuben Garrick incident

Ivan Cleary's beautiful message for Daniel Anderson and Kyle Turner

If you want a further insight into what makes the Penrith club such a tight, cohesive and success organisation, look no further than Ivan Cleary's press conference following the Panthers' win on the Gold Coast. As it was winding up, Cleary took time out to praise the rugby league community for the wonderful support afforded Daniel Anderson as the former NRL coach continues his long road back from the severe spinal injury that's left him in a wheelchair.

Cleary then touched on the tragic death of young South Sydney premiership forward Kyle Turner, who passed away suddenly at age 31. You could hear the emotion in Cleary's voice as he discussed both men.

This was genuine from the heart stuff and said a lot about the sort of person Cleary is. He's a family-first bloke who extends similar love and support to his players – and they return it in spades.

The Panthers get a bad rap at times for their perceived arrogance and boom box culture. And that upsets and frustrates Cleary. That's not what he – and his club - is about.

Dolphins crash back to earth after extraordinary start

Remember those joyous days back in March and April when the rugby league world fell in love with the Dolphins? They were being celebrated as the greatest thing to hit the game since black paint under the eyes.

The new kids on the block were being talked about as genuine top eight contenders and challenging Melbourne Storm as the greatest entry we've seen from a first-year franchise. There was even a renewed push for the Immortal selection process to be changed so Wayne Bennett could be crow-barred in as a coach.

Stats were rolled out showing teams winning their first three games go on to make the finals 82 per cent of the time. The Dolphins were headed for some September footy, baby.

Then, around early June, the wheels fell off and haven’t been reattached. Bennett's team has won one game from its last 10 starts, crashing to lightweights Wests Tigers and Canterbury along the way.

The Dolphins will finish in the bottom four, pretty much where most of us felt they would end up. It’s an admirable position for a young club in its first year and there is much to be excited about in Dolphins land, especially given the interest and support in south-east Queensland. It’s also a timely reminder the NRL is a marathon not a sprint and form in autumn counts for little once spring rolls around.

NRL legends divided over Charnze Nicoll Klokstad incident

Between them, Brad Fittler, Billy Slater and Andrew Johns played 908 NRL games, 85 Origins, 94 Tests and won six premierships. So, if that trio can't agree on the Charnze Nicoll Klokstad mid-air tackle on Reuben Garrick, what chance the rest of us mere mortals?

Asked on the Sunday Footy Show if the incident should have drawn a penalty, Johns was a defiant No voter. "It looks spectacular but he lands on his back. He doesn’t land in a dangerous position. What is Charnze supposed to do?" Joey argued.

Freddy countered: "The way it (the rule) is worded is 'is he in a dangerous position?' and I think at some stage he's in a dangerous position, so I'm saying penalty." Slater reluctantly backed the on-field decision of no penalty, arguing Nicoll Klokstad acted within the laws of the game and the referee and Bunker had no room to move.

NRL Head of Elite Competitions Graham Annesley has the same opinion, claiming the contact "was. not careless" and was "nothing more than an accident". As Manly coach Anthony Seibold said, if that sort of contact is okay then the NRL should use the vision to promote the game. Mmmm.

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