NRL Round 24 2024: Nathan Cleary injured as Melbourne Storm win 24-22 over Penrith Panthers
The Panthers’ hopes of a fourth-straight premiership have suffered a blow with superstar halfback Nathan Cleary injured on a night where the Storm were gifted a crucial late penalty in dubious circumstances.
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Luckily or unluckily Penrith have been in this situation before so many times this year. The packed BlueBet Stadium crowd fell to a stunned silence when Nathan Cleary came from the field with a shoulder injury with the scores locked at 22-all.
Penrith have become accustomed to playing without Cleary for so long this year after a run of hamstring injuries. But this time it could be different after Cleary came from the field with a shoulder injury with finals just four weeks away.
Penrith’s quest for a fourth straight premiership is now in serious jeopardy after they all but blew their chance of securing the minor premiership following the 24-22 loss to the Storm.
Cleary – who had his other shoulder operated on after the 2021 season – may not have to look too far for inspiration to come back though given Jarome Luai’s dramatic recovery from his own shoulder injury in the second last round of the regular season to come back in time for the preliminary final.
Nathan Cleary off with a left shoulder injury.
— NRL PHYSIO (@nrlphysio) August 15, 2024
Not much force in the mechanism - landing on outstretched arm brings concern for instability/subluxation, had same injury to right shoulder in 2021. Even if confirmed not auto season over. Best case hope is nerve burner type injury. pic.twitter.com/GLYWpTlYlp
KENNY, NAS CHARGED
Penrith’s Mitch Kenny and Melbourne’s Nelson Asofa-Solomona were both hit with careless high tackle bans from the match.
Asofa-Solomona will escape with a fine for his hit on Daine Laurie, but Kenny is facing one game on the sideline if he pleads guilty for a tackle on Grant Anderson in the 71st minute.
It will be a big blow for a Panthers’ side already struggling for key personnel.
REFEREES GIFT MELBOURNE A CRUCIAL GOAL
Storm centre Nick Meaney booted a gift penalty goal in the 73rd minute to win it. The penalty was awarded after Panthers enforcer James Fisher-Harris tackled Storm halfback Jahrome Hughes slightly late.
Both coaches were left confused with the officiating from referee Ashley Klein and Bunker official Gerard Sutton, while Fox League expert Mick Ennis slammed the final call.
“At the end, the penalty, I thought was really controversial, I thought that was really dubious, the one on James Fisher-Harris,” Ennis said.
“I thought that was a really poor call and it ended up being the difference.
“There were a number tonight which were quite controversial which I think we’ll hear a lot more about over the weekend.”
Nathan Hindmarsh echoed the sentiment on The Late Show with Matty Johns.
“That was a tough call. Fair enough if he hits him in the head or gives him whiplash but I don’t think that deserved a penalty, that one,” Hindmarsh said.
Panthers coach Ivan Cleary was slightly more diplomatic.
“There were a lot of calls and things going on tonight that I don’t know … but at the end of the day he made the call,” Cleary said.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy was also left perplexed with some decisions from Klein.
“I must not know all the rules,” Bellamy said in his post-match press conference.
ASOFA-SOLOMONA CREATES CARNAGE
There was carnage aplenty. Nelson Asofa-Solomona created a rare rugby league triple play. With one tackle he sent teammate Cameron Munster and Penrith winger Daine Laurie to the dressing rooms for respective head injury assessments before being sin-binned for his efforts.
The Storm enforcer will now face scrutiny from the match review committee for the contact he made with Laurie. It was his accidental shoulder to the head of Munster which would have almost certainly resulted in a suspension had it been to an opposition player.
Munster – who left the field with a bloody nose – and Laurie were able to return.
What Asofa-Solomona’s sin-binning did do is ignite the two premiership favourites with hostilities up until that point quite measured.
In separate incidents, Melbourne winger Grant Anderson was unable to return after coming from the field because of a concussion while the Panthers have four players on report. Props James Fisher-Harris and Lindsay Smith, hooker Mitch Kenny and centre Casey McLean all have a nervous wait ahead of their match against Canberra.
MATCH REPORT: PREMIERSHIP RACE THROWN WIDE OPEN
—Matt Jones
IS the dynasty over?
Penrith’s chance of winning a four-straight premiership have been dealt the ultimate blow with the world’s best player Nathan Cleary injuring his shoulder in the loss to Melbourne on Thursday night.
It was an innocuous looking tackle that Cleary went to ground in, but he immediately clutched at his left shoulder and didn’t play the ball.
The 20,516 fans went silent.
With Cleary off the field, the Storm kicked a penalty goal to move in front and Penrith never recovered.
Things looked like they was going well for the defending premiers midway through the second half when Nelson Asofa-Solomona was sin-binned for a high shot on Daine Laurie.
The big prop also collected teammate Cameron Munster in the same hit and the Queenslander looked like he suffered a serious facial injury.
But, amazingly, he passed his HIA.
Coach Ivan Cleary said he wasn’t sure exactly what type of shoulder injury it was.
“I’m not sure, but I’m concerned because it was bad enough for him to come off,” Cleary said.
“We’ll organise the scans tomorrow (Friday) and until we get those, we’ll be in a better position to move our way forward.”
Ivan revealed his son had been battling a shoulder complaint since the summer but got it right when he was out for 10 rounds with a hamstring injury.
His latest injury won’t keep him out for that long but it could be enough to end Penrith’s tilt at a four-straight title.
“He hurt it in the pre-season and had some trouble with it at the start of the year and with the hamstring injury he got on top of it and it’s a reoccurrence of it tonight,” Cleary said.
“He’s in better shape than what he was when he did his hammy. What do you do? It’s just one of those years I think.”
Entering Thursday’s top of the table clash against the Storm, the Panthers were as short as $2.60 to win the premiership.
Betting markets were suspended after the Storm’s 24-22 win.
OBSTRUCTION CONFUSION
The NRL seems to have gone soft on obstruction calls.
A controversial block play was allowed to go to open the first try of the match.
Nathan Cleary was knocked over by Jack Howarth in what looked like an incident that would be pulled up but the bunker cleared the contact.
Cleary was hit on his outside shoulder and Howarth stopped in the line.
It’s normally pulled up by the bunker.
It wasn’t and Grant Anderson went on to score and it confused one of the game’s leading minds.
Storm strike early straight from the scrum! 👊
— Fox League (@FOXNRL) August 15, 2024
📺 Watch #NRLPanthersStorm on ch.502 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/B1ijnGXtqA
âœï¸ BLOG https://t.co/n4s17OSMSU
🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/S6cFQqtpmDpic.twitter.com/ChEBwdrIbS
“This is such a grey area,” Fox Sports commentator Cooper Cronk said.
“He stops in the line and if Cleary can get out, he can help to defend.”
The Storm went in again 10 minutes later when Dylan Edwards was outjumped for a bomb by Will Warbick who tapped it back to Eliesa Katoa who dived over to make it 10-0.
Two of Penrith’s stars then clicked into top gear to level up the scores.
First it was Isaah Yeo who ball-played like Cleary to send Lindsay Smith over, then Jarome Luai put in a sensational grubber kick for Izack Tago to dive on.
The Storm again took advantage of Will Warbick’s height over Brian To’o and he got above the Panther to assist Katoa for a second try.
“It’s been a real target for the Melbourne Storm, Warbick over the top of Brian To’o,” Fox Sports commentator Michael Ennis said.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Surely now Craig Bellamy must be named Dally M Coach of the Year.
He’s all but won another minor premiership with a team that, on paper, looks like a fringe top four side at best.
He’s got the likes of Grant Anderson, Jack Howath, Will Warbick and Tyran Wishart playing so well that they’ll be targets for other clubs soon.
Wishart’s 60th minute try, when his team was down to 12, was classy as he ran through the middle of the Penrith defence against the run of play.
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Originally published as NRL Round 24 2024: Nathan Cleary injured as Melbourne Storm win 24-22 over Penrith Panthers
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