3 minute read

Nathan Cleary is ready to be the main man and lead Penrith back into NRL finals contention, his dad and coach Ivan has declared.

Ivan Cleary is talking about his NRL team's hopes for 2020 when he stops mid-sentence to shoo away a black crow.

It'd be hard to blame Cleary for being superstitious; at times last season he must've thought dark forces were conspiring against him.

It's been about 12 month since an investigation begun into the involvement of Penrith players in a sex tape scandal that help would derail their NRL season.

"Last year I was pretty happy with the pre-season. We had a good first trial," coach Cleary tells AAP.

"And then everything changed that week."

For the rest of the campaign there were only rare glimpses of a side widely tipped to challenge for the premiership.

This year, Cleary is confident the doubters will be eating crow.

Entering his second season since his controversial return to the club, Cleary insisted players are more settled in their roles and the culture has been reset.

He feels more ready than he did the previous summer.

"I still didn't know who I was coaching until late October (in 2018)," Cleary said.

"This year, I could actually process what we did, what we needed to change, what we need to improve.

"As the head coach, I'm much better prepared this year."

That's vital, because improvement is needed across the board after Penrith's attack ranked just 13th in 2019 - despite boasting NSW's State of Origin halves.

One of those, veteran five-eighth James Maloney, is gone, heaping pressure on Ivan's son Nathan, as well as youngster Jarome Luai, to create opportunities.

The addition of Trent Barrett as attacking coach is expected to help.

But, having defended the combination for most of last year, Cleary now concedes that, as a duo, Maloney and Cleary struggled at times to steer the ship.

"You could probably be forgiven for saying that when one of them played on their own, the team actually ran better," the coach said.

This year, Cleary has no hesitation in declaring who's in control of the team, saying Nathan is ready to be the leader.

"(He) probably was last year as well, but he's definitely ready now," Cleary said of his son.

"It's nice and clear what we're pushing for: clarity."

Also gone from last year's squad are Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Waqa Blake, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak and Wayde Egan.

Incoming are the less-heralded Zane Tetevano and Kurt Capewell while Cleary was delighted to have lured hooker Api Koroisau back to Penrith.

"I was pretty happy we got that one sorted," he said.

"Api's definitely already made a significant impact here."

Cleary said last year's high expectations on the Panthers were way off the mark, having not made the top four since 2014.

"I think if you'd ask every coach, they'd probably prefer there's not a massive amount of external pressure, or pressure that's not justified," he said.

Not that he doesn't feel the clouds hovering over him again.

"Every team starts every year feeling pretty good about their chances. In that sense, everyone's under pressure," Cleary said.

PENRITH

Finishes over the past three seasons: 2019 - 10th, 2018 - 5th, 2017 - 7th

Coach: Ivan Cleary

Captain: James Tamou

Key gains: Api Koroisau (Sea Eagles), Zane Tetevano (Roosters), Kurt Capewell (Sharks)

Key losses: Reagan Campbell-Gillard (Eels), Siona Katoa (Bulldogs), Wayde Egan (Warriors), Tim Grant, Sam McKendry (retired), James Maloney (Super League), Frank Winterstein (unsigned), Tyrell Fuimaono (Dragons)

Best team: 1. Dylan Edwards, 2. Josh Mansour, 3. Dean Whare, 4. Brent Naden, 5. Brian To'o, 6. Jarome Luai, 7. Nathan Cleary, 8. James Tamou, 9. Apisai Koroisau, 10. Moses Leota, 11. Viliame Kikau, 12. Liam Martin, 13. James Fisher-Harris. Bench: 14. Kurt Capewell, 15. Zane Tetevano, 16. Isaah Yeo, 17. Jack Hetherington

Predicted finish: 12th