Cleary made one huge mistake in Rabbitohs loss a fortnight ago. He won’t make it again

BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 25: Nathan Cleary of the Panthers catches a pass during the warm-up before the NRL Preliminary Final match between the Melbourne Storm and the Penrith Panthers at Suncorp Stadium on September 25, 2021 in Brisbane, Australia. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

A fortnight ago, Nathan Cleary got stuck in a “loop” against the Rabbitohs. The Panthers game plan was to prey on rookie fullback Blake Taffe, filling in for Latrell Mitchell. Only, Taffe delivered a performance for the ages.

This time around, as the two title hopefuls meet in the NRL grand final to close out the 2021 season, Nathan Cleary promises he “won’t make the same mistake” again. The bomb plan “wasn’t bad,” he admits, but understanding when it had failed and reverting to Plan B will be crucial for Penrith if they want to make up for their heartbreaking loss in last year’s big dance.

“That was one thing that happened in the first week that we want to fix. Blake [Taffe] had that early drop, so I went after it. [Problem was], I think it was a bit too much,” Cleary admitted.

“What I should have done is gone for the field position battle.

“It’s different every game, of course. We have a kicking plan, but that changes as the game goes on, and I didn’t do that well enough last time [against the Rabbitohs]. Adapting is going to be key.”

“Kicking is going to be key for sure. Reynolds as one of the best kicking games in the comp. In big games, where you get your kicks, where you let the other team start their sets, that’s so important.”

“We’ve worked hard on that now, and it’s going to be a big part of the game for sure.”

Cleary has been casting one eye back to his team’s 16-10 loss in the first week of finals, trying to pinpoint exactly what went wrong for the team beyond the Taffe obsession leading them astray.

There are a few things he’s already dug up from the game, and in the countdown to the big dance he’s “100% sure” he’ll mine up a few more “big lessons.”

“We learned a lot out of that [loss]. More around my set.

“They played really well, and we know that,” he continued. “We have to play better than we did last time to get the win on Sunday. It’s a big challenge for us, but we’re playing good footy now.

“We had a plan for the last two games [8-6 over the Eels, 10-6 over the Storm], so for those to work out basically exactly how we mapped it out is always a good feeling. It’s a very rewarding feeling, and such a big moment in the game.

Cleary added that Panthers fans should expect a few set plays heading into the final to keep the Rabbitohs on their toes: “Yeah I think you can expect to see some stuff, definitely.”

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