Joey: Jett Cleary’s Panthers deal spells trouble for out-of-favour star
Rugby league Immortal Andrew Johns has questioned if out-of-favour Panthers playmaker Blaize Talagi has a future at the foot of the mountains, in light of Jett Cleary’s stellar NRL debut and Penrith’s other halves.
The Panthers must beat Wests Tigers by more than two points at CommBank Stadium on Sunday if they are to claim the minor premiership, after the Warriors edged the Sea Eagles 31-30 in an Auckland thriller on Saturday.
Nathan Cleary (left) and Blaize Talagi. NRL Imagery.
Intriguingly, Panthers coach Ivan Cleary has again opted against using Talagi as the halves partner of his champion son Nathan, instead going for Jack Cole.
Jack Cogger, who is unavailable for the final-round match because of a suspension, has been preferred over Talagi at five-eighth in other weeks.
And Talagi’s mission to win back the No.6 jumper will become even harder when Jett Cleary crosses from the Warriors to the Panthers in the off-season, although Cole is off to the Bears.
Penrith went all chips in on Talagi after the exit of Jarome Luai following the 2024 season, and the 21-year-old is contracted to the Panthers until the end of 2027, but his future at the premiership powerhouse is murky.
“Moving forward, I don’t know if he’s got a future there at Penrith,” Johns said on Wide World of Sports’ Immortal Behaviour.
“Jett Cleary’s coming back, then you’ve got Jack Cole and Jack Cogger. So he’s gone down the pecking order. Interesting to see.
“Big off-season for Blaize.”
Jett Cleary, who like Talagi is 21, had a magnificent NRL debut against the Knights in Auckland last week.
Lining up at halfback, the former Panthers junior set up three tries and kicked brilliantly to steer the Warriors to a 46-32 win.
His famous dad and brother, Ivan and Nathan, watched from the stands as he made his mark on the NRL stage.
There’s no doubting Talagi’s attacking spark, but Johns cast doubt over his defence.
Jett Cleary and his family after his brilliant NRL debut. Hannah Peters/Getty Images
“Blaize early in the year, when Canterbury put a score on them [the Panthers], Jacob Preston terrorised them – terrorised Blaize and also Casey McLean, with that gap between them,” the legendary halfback said.
“And I’ve sort of felt since then his confidence has been knocked around, but also he’s been targeted defensively. And if you show any weaknesses, teams just sit on it, so it’s an area of his game he’s got to improve, Blaize.
“Ivan’s got a mentality of defence. Jack Cole’s a really good defender, Jack Cogger will come back in.
“... They put him on late against the Chooks and he looked a bit all at sea, threw an intercept, and his confidence is down.”
As for Jett Cleary?
“He’s good,” Johns said.
“He’s a tough boy.”
