Penrith Panthers NRL legend Mark Geyer praises Ivan Cleary’s guidance
PANTHERS great Mark Geyer looks at Penrith’s fairytale NRL season and says there will be more of the same next year.
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IT WAS a season of ups and downs, new faces and emphatic victories, that saw the Penrith Panthers finish one game short of the grand final, but prove to everyone they were a team to be reckoned with for seasons to come.
Panthers great Mark Geyer reflected on the season admitting at the start he could not have imagined what would unfold.
“I must confess I wasn’t as optimistic at the start of the year, we all knew that Jamal Idris and Jamie Soward were handy players in their day but maybe were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Geyer said.
“I thought (Tyrone) Peachey was a good signing, but I don’t think you could say that one of the signings this year didn’t play way above expectations.
“They got the sense of what sort of city we are and they embraced it.”
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It took the Panthers a while to find consistency and string back-to-back wins together, but it was Matt Moylan’s form and the emergence of Dallin Watene-Zelezniak that really put the team on the map.
“I can’t really think of one turning point. I thought we could be a top eight team this year, only just, but to finish fourth I think the club has over- achieved dramatically,” he said.
“In saying that I think even if you asked where they will finish next year, people will say they’ll be in the top eight but not the top four, but I definitely think they will be.”
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It wasn’t until the likes of Elijah Taylor, Peter Wallace, Tyrone Peachey and Bryce Cartwright faced season-ending injuries that the Panthers proved their worth.
“It was just a combination of self- belief dedication and believing in what the coach said,” Geyer said.
“Ivan Cleary didn’t get coach of the year for no reason.”
“And it all comes back to Gus (Gould), it’s a good feeling when you can come back to your home town and finish what you started, he’s halfway to turning this club into a super club.”
But the fairytale had to end and after the Panthers’ shock win over the Roosters they fell one short of the final against the Bulldogs.
“It was always going to be an uphill battle with our stocks very low as far as players go,” Geyer said.
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“We got so far on natural ability we just needed some more experience for the big games but if you marked us we were definitely a 9/10.”
And there is more to look forward two next season, Geyer said.
“Young (Apisai) Koroisau from the Rabbits is a good buy, then there are eight players to come back, you’ve got the under-20s who just missed out on the eight, and the NSW cup side who won the grand final,” he said.
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“Depth isn’t going to be a problem now.
“I’m really excited to see young Peachy come back and Bryce Cartwright, I can’t wait to see him with a full season under his belt.
“We have some unbelievable players who just had their season cut short.”
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