Nathan Cleary has
signed a five-year contract extension that will keep him at the Penrith Panthers until 2024.
In an exclusive interview with NRL.com, the Panthers halfback sat down with chief reporter
Michael Chammas to discuss why he committed his future to Penrith despite constant speculation linking him to the Wests Tigers.
MC: Nathan, it's taken a while, but you've committed as a Panther. Can you talk us through how hard or how easy it has been to come to this decision?
NC: It was a pretty easy decision. I made it clear from the start of the year that I didn't want to talk about my contract throughout the year because I wanted to focus on footy and do the best for the team. Once the season was done, I had made up my mind that I wanted to stay. I think the last six weeks or so of the season really drove that home for me. Just the vibe around the place, the people I play with and the coaching staff ... I mean Ciro (Cameron Ciraldo) and Wal (Peter Wallace) have been amazing. It ended up being a pretty easy decision.
MC: I know that you got along well with Hook (Anthony Griffin) but it seems like things have changed around here since he left. Is it fair to say those changes have helped convince you this is where your future should be?
NC: Yeah they have and it made my decision easier as I had more clarity. I never really had a problem with Hook and I'll be forever grateful that he gave me the chance to play first grade. It was a massive gamble at the time. I was 18 and he had to make some tough decisions to give me my debut. I will always cherish that and be really grateful for that. But things weren't going to plan this year and there was often a lot of confusion. I'm not trying to say anything bad about Hook here, but once it all got cleared up everyone was on the same page and everyone was a lot happier. Those last six weeks, even though we weren't playing great footy, training was going really well. Everyone was in the same direction and wanted to end up at the same destination.
MC: Is that when you knew this is where you wanted to be?
NC: Yeah it was. I was probably getting a little bit worried at the stages when there was confusion and people were starting to butt heads. But the back end of the year I have nothing but praise for the way things were. I really loved it and enjoyed it. The coaching staff was on the same page. They were making training fun. And the boys, we were always tight even when everything was going on, but we were all happy being around each other.
MC: So people assumed that Anthony Griffin going means your old man is coming and that's why you're committing your future here. But from what you're saying it's got nothing to do with whether your dad's here or not, it's about the change in environment. Is that right?
NC: Yeah exactly. It's got nothing to do with my old man. I was happy to make the decision by myself. What happens in the future with dad is out of my control. I don't think I ever thought I was going to leave even with what was going on. I always thought I would stay and it would all work itself out eventually and yeah it did. This is a real happy place to be in at the moment.
MC: Is there a part of you that feels you owe this club? As you said you made your debut here as a teenager, you've gone on to win an Origin series and have also played in three straight finals series. Was there a little bit of you thinking, this is who I am, this is where I should be?
NC: I actually said that to dad half way through the year. I said 'I really don't want to leave without delivering something I could be proud of to Penrith'. I think I do owe a fair bit to the club. They've helped me out so much. They gave me a debut at 18 and not too many clubs would have done that. For the time I've been in first grade, they've always been looking out for me and helping me. Even when I wasn't playing my best at different stages, they always backed me and they always had faith in me. I've got to repay the favour.
MC: So how did your dad take the news that you wouldn't be a Tiger? Is he just happy that you're happy?
NC: Yeah exactly. Dad's always been like that. Both dad and mum. They've always wanted what's best for me and I'm really lucky to have them. They've given me a lot of guidance over what I should do and what I shouldn't do not just with this contract but life in general. I told them that I wanted to stay and they were over the moon. They kind of knew it was the best thing for me. They said as long as I'm happy then they are happy. I'm really lucky to be in that position.
MC: Have you given much thought to what it will be like for you with your teammates when or if he ever coaches you? I imagine you all go to coffee or lunch and sometimes you talk about training and bag the coach or the plans. I'm tipping the boys aren't going to be able to include you in those discussions any more. Have you given that serious thought because maybe you will be ostracised and it will change the relationship you have with some of these blokes.
NC: That does happen. We all go out and talk about training and what we thought. But I'm hoping it wouldn't change things for me. If it happens, whenever it happens, I will just treat him as a coach hopefully. Even though he is my dad, it's just how it will work out. Hopefully the players can see past that. I know that if eventually it does happen it's not going to be all smooth sailing. Footy never is. I don't have these massive expectations that it will be a perfect world being coached by my dad or that nothing bad will ever happen, but it's just a challenge to overcome if it does arise.
MC: So what happens now? Is he here at this club next year?
NC: Not that I know of. Obviously my intentions have been that I wanted him to coach me but it's never been a package deal or anything. I said this is my decision and what happens from here is his decision. It would obviously be nice. I would love that. But in the meantime I also loved being coached by Ciro.
MC: Were you ever worried about the family name? The Cleary name is held in such high regard, I imagine you were probably conscious of the fact you didn't want to be the one that tarnished that through whatever actions or decisions you made.
NC: I'd be lying if I said that it wasn't worrying me. Obviously I didn't want people tarnishing our name and I think that probably affected me and mum more than anything. Dad's pretty cruisey. When he hears this stuff he doesn't really take it on board too much. Being such a close family, we pride ourselves on what others think of us. That was probably one of the hardest things hearing the stuff people were saying.
MC: How are you with everything Nath? Not just this whole contract situation with you and your father, but we sometimes forget that you're still this 20-year-old kid trying to deal with the fact that you're probably the most talked about player in the game. Are you alright?
NC: It's pretty crazy. I've had to take a back seat from everything and focus on the people around me. I think I fell into the trap of trying to make everyone happy at stages. Especially this year. I wanted everyone to like me. I was worried so much about what other people thought of me. I came to the realisation that it's just the nature of footy. You can't get everyone to like you. Not everyone is going to be happy with what you do. I really focused on the people close to me – the club, my friends and my family. They are the people that mean the most to me. Their opinion of me is what I take on board and go from there.
MC: Are you proud of the way you handled yourself?
NC: There was never going to be an easy way to handle this. There was no easy way out. Especially with me saying that I didn't want to make a decision until the end of the year. There was always going to be speculation. I just couldn't stop that. I hope people still hold me in high regard. But I'm happy with the decision I've made.
MC: You said that you wanted to put the contract talk aside and wait until the end of the year, but everyone else didn't allow you to stop thinking about it. Did that get pretty frustrating, having to say the same thing over and over again?
NC: Yeah it got very frustrating. It happened multiple times throughout the year and plenty of rumours coming up. I was even reading people saying I was a done deal at the Tigers and I'm thinking 'geez that's news to me'. Going to the Tigers was always in the back of my mind because dad was there, but I think I always thought it would be hard to leave Penrith and deep down I didn't really want to do it. The constant speculation did get a bit annoying but I had that same line rehearsed every time but it was the truth.
Rest of interview in link:
https://www.penrithpanthers.com.au/news/2018/09/24/qa-with-cleary-why-he-wants-to-be-a-panther/
