Cleary Vows to Return After Surgery

Nathan Cleary, the star halfback of the Penrith Panthers, has vowed to return to the field after his 2026 season was cut short due to a horrific compound fracture of his left ankle. The injury occurred during the Panthers' NRL preliminary final defeat against Newcastle, ruling him out of the Kangaroos' World Cup campaign.

On Monday, Cleary posted a photo from his hospital bed, with his left leg bandaged following surgery, and expressed his gratitude to fans for their support. "Thank you so much to everyone that has reached out, the support has been unbelievable," he wrote on Instagram. "Yesterday sucked but it's all part of the journey and it's made me even more grateful for the people I have around me. I'll be back."

Cleary's injury cast a pall over the Sydney Olympic Stadium, with Panthers players visibly distressed on field while their star was being treated by medical staff. "He's one of my best mates," Panthers captain Isaah Yeo said post-match. "He's your brother out there. You don't like seeing anyone like that. You just want to be there for him. It's a lonely little place out there when you've got something like that going on."

Cleary's father and coach, Ivan Cleary, also revealed that seeing his son in such a state at half-time was "emotional". It was later revealed that Cleary was already playing with a broken bone in his right foot as the Panthers hoped to manage his involvement in the prelim with half an eye looking forward to next weekend's grand final against the Sydney Roosters.

Cleary came onto the field 25 minutes into the first half, but only lasted 10 minutes before Newcastle hooker Phoenix Crossland fell onto his ankle in a tackle. Crossland was sent off for a hip drop and was sent straight to the NRL judiciary by the match review committee, where a lengthy suspension could not only rule him out of Newcastle's first NRL grand final in 25 years, but also impact the Kiwi's World Cup campaign.

Former Maroons coach Billy Slater has weighed in on the incident, calling for change. "It has to come down to the responsibility of the tackler," Slater said on his podcast. "[But] I honestly feel the game has a little bit of a responsibility in this as well. When you change interpretations and change rules, you always have a flow-on effect."

Slater continued, "If you think about the protection of kickers and ball players and not being able to tackle them even fractionally after they pass the ball … 10 years ago this wouldn't have happened. Fifteen years ago that tackle would not have happened because Phoenix Crossland would've had more speed and force going into that tackle."

The NRL judiciary will sit on Tuesday, with Crossland needing to argue his case to have any chance of playing in the 2026 grand final.