Cleary the daytime king, unbeaten since 2019
Scott Bailey |
The last time Nathan Cleary lost a day game, COVID-19 didn’t exist and the jury was still out on whether he and his father Ivan could work as a duo.
Fast forward six years and the pandemic has passed, the Clearys are the No.1 father-son duo of all time and Penrith are the new kings of daytime football.
Conventional wisdom should suggest the NRL’s move to a Sunday afternoon preliminary final will play into Brisbane’s hands this weekend.
Temperatures are tipped to reach 30C at Suncorp Stadium, and fast football in dry conditions should help the Broncos unlock Reece Walsh.
Penrith are renowned for being a meticulous side that wears teams down with a death by a thousand cuts, but their record in just about any conditions is impressive.
It’s a reason why they are gunning for a fifth straight premiership over the next fortnight.
But as evidenced in Sunday’s first-half demolition of Canterbury, the Panthers are particularly lethal in the day.
Since losing to Canberra on a Sunday afternoon in late July of 2019, Penrith have lost just three of the 38 day matches they have played.
Cleary’s returns are even greater, having won all 26 of the day matches he has played, missing Penrith’s 2024 losses to the Warriors, North Queensland and Canberra.
Included in those victories was Penrith’s 32-8 win over Brisbane at Magic Round this year, where Cleary repeated his heroics of the 2023 grand final success.
“I’ve heard people talk about it in the past few days,” Penrith hooker Mitch Kenny said.
“(Daytime football) probably gets the best out of everyone’s attack, so on the other side of the coin it will probably bring the best out of the Broncos.
“But I feel like playing a 4pm Sunday against the Bulldogs was really good preparation for that. So we’ll be ready.”
Penrith, for their part, insist their game does not change regardless of conditions. In their mind, it matters little if the sun or the moon is out.
But there is no question that faster game suits them.
Since the start of their dynasty in 2020, the Panthers average an extra five points in the day than they do at night.
In day matches this year they are more clinical, with their completion rate rising to 85 per cent despite the temptation to spread the ball around more.
On Sunday afternoon, the Panthers went 20 from 20 as they built a 36-8 lead over Canterbury.
Crucially, though, the four-time defending premiers’ defence holds just as firm either way, with 14.2 points conceded regardless of day or night since the start of 2020.
And they miss the same amount of tackles, irrespective of whether or not their opposition feel more free during the day.
“We probably expect our opposition to move the ball around a bit more in the day, but that’s fine. We can handle that,” Kenny said.
“We try to play the same way regardless of the weather, the location or the time. We definitely don’t approach it any differently.”
AAP
