NRL news: Panthers stars Nathan Cleary, Tyrone May, Stephen Crichton fined for post-grand final antics
Penrith’s Tyrone May is fighting for his future at the club after being fined by the NRL, while Nathan Cleary and Stephen Crichton were also sanctioned for their misguided grand final celebrations.
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Penrith player Tyrone May is fighting for his future at the club and his captain Nathan Cleary is fighting to maintain his clean-cut image after the pair were slapped with fines by the NRL over the Panthers’ misguided grand final celebrations.
Centre Stephen Crichton was also sanctioned by the NRL after he and Cleary were found to have treated the premiership trophy in a manner that was disrespectful to rugby league legends Norm Provan and Arthur Summons – a statue of the pair forms part of the trophy.
Penrith immediately reacted to the developments by standing down May from all club-related duties and appearances pending a board meeting to decide his fate.
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May is off contract at the end of the month but it is understood the half, who is close to the Cleary family, has agreed a new deal that is yet to be registered with the NRL.
That deal is now in jeopardy as the Panthers prepare to discuss whether to continue placing their faith in a player who has tested their patience on more than one occasion in recent years.
The latest indiscretion led to the NRL issuing May with a breach notice on Tuesday outlining plans for him to be fined $7500 for acting contrary to the best interests of the game for posting and being part of social media posts which did not align with the values of the game.
May was also ordered to undergo further education programs.
Of most concern to the NRL was an image and comments that were posted immediately after the grand final in which May appeared to take aim at those who had criticised him when he narrowly avoided jail for filming a woman without her consent.
May posted a series of photos captioned with lyrics from a song by Drake. The first image was of May, with coach Ivan Cleary in the background, attending Parramatta Local Court for his trial, where he subsequently pleaded guilty to four counts of intentionally recording an image without consent.
“And the dirt that they threw on my name/turned to soil and I grew up out it/time for y’all to figure out what y’all gon’ do about it,” May wrote.
The caption was liked by a number of his teammates as well as the Panthers’ own Instagram account. The NRL was furious with the post and showed their disdain for the way he reacted to the premiership win by fining him.
Penrith are ropeable as well, the club immediately confirming that May’s future would be discussed at an upcoming meeting of the board.
Cleary also had his copybook blotted after he and Crichton were fined $7000 and $4000 respectively for acting contrary to the best interests of the game when they were photographed on social media acting in a disrespectful manner toward the premiership trophy.
“The notice alleges the premiership trophy was damaged at a club awards night and although not personally responsible for the damage, the players subsequently treated the trophy in a manner which showed disrespect towards the individuals depicted in the iconic moment memorialised on the trophy,” the NRL said.
The sculpture of Summons and Provan was separated from the base of the trophy as the Panthers players celebrated their premiership victory over South Sydney.
While the trophy has been damaged before, the concern for the NRL was the way the sculpture of two of the game’s greatest players was treated afterwards as social media images appeared of Penrith players carrying it in a pram and a baby pouch.
Panthers chief executive Brian Fletcher said: “The Panthers players had no intention to show disrespect towards the trophy, Norm Provan or Arthur Summons, however they understand that’s how their actions may have been interpreted.
“Everyone at Panthers is well aware of the immense contributions Norm and Arthur made to our game and the high esteem in which they are held by everyone involved in rugby league.
“On behalf of the club I sincerely apologise for any offence or distress this matter may have caused the rugby league community and particularly the Provan and Summons families.”
While Cleary and May were hit in the hip pocket, there was some good news for the pair when the NRL opted not to take any action against them over the grand final border hopping involving three of their close friends.
May and Cleary were interviewed by the NRL integrity unit after their friends attended the grand final and sat in seats near family members and friends of Penrith players.
The three also celebrated with Penrith players the day after the grand final before they were fined and sent home by Queensland Health after they were found to have breached public health orders.
While there was no suggestion that Cleary or May knew they had done so, or were even aware they were at the grand final until they celebrated with the pair after the game, they were still spoken to by the integrity unit.
Regardless, they both had their copybooks blotted again – May and Cleary were fined and suspended last year over the tiktok scandal.
INCREDIBLE DETAIL SHEDS NEW LIGHT ON CLEARY HEROICS
By James Phelps
Nathan Cleary did not receive a single painkilling injection while playing with the busted shoulder that should have ended his season.
News Corp can reveal Cleary refused to be injected before games because he did not want to lose any feeling in his arm.
Cleary instead endured crippling pain in the eight matches he played after returning from the injury he suffered during State of Origin III.
The revelation sheds new light on Cleary’s heroics given most players have at least one painkilling injection before playing with an injury that requires surgery.
Cleary was offered the injections but opted to endure the pain because he did not want his passing game affected by numbness or loss of power.
It can also be revealed that Cleary was close to succumbing to the pain on at least four occasions with teams successfully targeting his injured shoulder.
Cleary suffered two severe blows to his left shoulder in round 25 against the Eels and another against the Storm in the elimination final.
Cody Walker also delivered Cleary a painful blow in the grand final – but it wasn’t the missed tackle that led to the South Sydney try.
Cleary successfully underwent surgery in Queensland last week with surgeons removing bone and reattaching ligaments during a marathon eight-hour procedure.
First step towards 2022 🆠#pantherpride 🾠pic.twitter.com/ClxxTmeFcX
— Penrith Panthers 🆠(@PenrithPanthers) October 13, 2021
TRUTH ABOUT BROKEN NRL TROPHY REVEALED
The mystery of the broken trophy has been solved with the NRL integrity unit obtaining a video that reveals the culprit – and it isn’t even a Panthers player.
We can reveal an unidentified female innocently caused a table that was holding the trophy to collapse — in an accident that broke the NRL’s greatest prize.
The video, which is set to clear Penrith of any wrongdoing, shows the trophy-holding table falling after the women moved in to get her photo taken with the 2021 NRL premiers.
The woman — part of the Panthers’ inner sanctum — is understood to have sat on the table in a move that caused it to collapse.
The incident occurred at the Twin Waters hotel on the Sunshine Coast, two days after the Panthers beat South Sydney in the epic decider.
The trophy hit the ground and caused the bronze bust — featuring Norm Provan and Arthur Summons embracing after the 1963 grand final — to be separated from the base.
News Corp has learned a previous weld in the rod that holds the bust to the base gave way when the trophy hit the ground. The repair bill is expected to be no more than $100 with only a re-weld required to fix the famous prize.
The Panthers came under heavy fire after pictures of the broken trophy emerged on social media.
The images — in combination with a vindictive social media post made by Tyrone May about his criminal charge for intentionally recording an intimate image without consent — led to the Panthers being slammed as arrogant.
Speaking for the first time since the premiership win, Panthers coach Ivan Cleary said his side’s culture should not be judged by a broken trophy and misguided Instagram post.
“None of us have ever won a competition so it is all new to us,” Cleary said.
“And yes, the jubilation of the achievement and the celebration may have led to some misguided social media posts. But I can tell you that we certainly did not intend to disrespect anyone. It is not what we are about.
“I think that anyone that meets them knows that they are quality people.”
“I can’t tell you how much good feedback we have had from our time in Queensland. Our boys have interacted with so many people in the community and left a positive mark.
“The boys did a six-hour plus signing session a day after Mad Monday and did it wearing a smile.
“Yes, a couple of social media posts came out the wrong way but if that is the biggest problem we have then I am OK with it. I don’t want people thinking these boys are arrogant because it is far from the truth.”
NRL CHAMPS PENRITH LOVE A PARADE
The Panthers’ NRL premiership-winning celebrations are far from over, with the club negotiating to hold street parades in both Penrith and Bathurst.
The Penrith street parade is planned for November 20, with a members’ event at BlueBet Stadium on the same day. The Panthers are also in talks with Bathurst council, with a street parade proposed for early January.
In a gesture that will give the Panthers’ legion of western NSW fans access to their heroes, the team will also hold a marathon signing session in front of the Bathurst council chambers on the same day.
Penrith has embraced Bathurst as a second home and has taken several NRL matches to Carrington Park. The club will look to further solidify the relationship by playing another match in Bathurst next year.
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