What’s the Buzz: Free meal that delivered Ivan Cleary to Panthers
This is the remarkable story from July, 2018 when Penrith were on the verge of firing Anthony Griffin and looking at other head coach options, writes PHIL ROTHFIELD.
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This was the cafe where the foundations were first laid more than two years ago for the Penrith Panthers’ grand final appearance.
Chairman Dave O’Neill remembers it well, sitting opposite then Wests Tigers coach Ivan Cleary.
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He was so excited about the prospect of Cleary returning to Penrith — three years after he was sacked by Phil Gould — that he walked out of the cafe and forgot to pay.
It is the remarkable story from July, 2018 when the Panthers were on the verge of firing Anthony Griffin and looking at other head coach options.
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Gould was secretly trying to convince Wayne Bennett to join the Panthers. Unbeknown to “Gus”, O’Neill met with Cleary at Cafe Lattetude in Penrith.
“It was the best lunch I’ve ever had,” O’Neill recalled this week.
“Ivan’s a great bloke and it was supposed to be just a catch-up and a light conversation.
“As a throwaway line I asked him would he ever consider coming back. He said, yes.
“Both of us were that excited we walked out and forgot to pay. I got back to my office and thought, geez, I better go back and fix up the bill.”
O’Neill insists that at no stage did he try to entice Cleary to break his contract at Wests Tigers.
“There was nothing in concrete,” he said.
“There was no deal done.
“We decided that day that we don’t know when and we don’t know how, but Ivan had to come back to Penrith.
“He wanted to coach Nathan and he loved our club.
“We didn’t talk money or anything but things progressed and he eventually came home.
“He has done a sensational job to lead us into the grand final.”
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