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Battle Royale: Cleary ready to lead the Panthers into battle
The battle of the number sevens will go a long way towards determining the outcome of tonight's NRL grand final between Penrith and South Sydney.
Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary admits he got carried away with a specific plan when the teams last met three weeks ago.
But he won't make the same mistake of bombing Rabbitohs fullback Blake Taaffe relentlessly in the season decider.
The South Sydney custodian dropped his first touch in their last clash before he bounced back and played a starring role in the Rabbitohs' 16-10 upset win.
"Blake had that early drop so I probably went after him a bit too much rather than playing the field position battle," Cleary said.
"But it's kind of different each game you get in with the flow of the game and you have a bit of a kicking plan, but it changes as the game goes on and it's something you've got to adapt to."
Cleary will face off with Adam Reynolds with both halfbacks holding the keys to unlocking the defence of the opposition.
The Penrith maestro has full respect for what Reynolds is capable of, but he's looking forward to the battle.
"Reyno's got one of the best kicking games in the comp and kicking games are an important thing in big games and where you allow the other team to start their sets," Cleary said.
"It's something we work hard at and it'll be no different this weekend."
Reynolds won on points' decision in their last clash, but Cleary will look to deliver the knockout blow inspired by a genius play in their win over Melbourne last weekend.
The halfback admits he gained great satisfaction out of a cross-field kick from dummy half which landed on winger Stephen Crichton's chest in the third minute.
"Once you get into the big games it's a lot harder to find points and you're versing the best defences in the league so I guess you've got to be creative sometimes and work hard at trying to find those points," Cleary said.
"It's such a big moment and in a big game."
Coach Ivan Cleary admitted the Panthers would use their experience in big games over the last two years to their advantage.
It could be the motivation that results in their first premiership since 2003.
"We know the pain of losing so we're certainly going to sit back and enjoy the week," he said.
"In terms of (last year's grand final) there were a few things we learned, but we've learned that through this finals series too.
"Last year was very new for us in many ways and all the little experiences we're getting will help us again."
Co-captain Isaah Yeo said while they would enjoy the week their aim for the whole season was to win the competition.
He knows they haven't achieved that yet.
"It's extremely hard to get here, but we understand we're here to win the grand final and there's still one more to go."
This article originally appears in Volume 2 Issue 30 of The Front Row.