Ivan Cleary appeared to have one of the safest coaching positions in rugby league, that was until the mayhem on Tuesday forced him out of the Penrith Panthers.
Panther fans were left scratching their heads trying to work out how this all happened, me being one of them.
I don’t agree with the decision considering the difficult season dogged by injuries. This was generally echoed by rugby league fans this week.
Many Panthers fans trust general manager Phil Gould in the decision he has made, but only time will tell if I can be convinced.
After all, in May 2015 Gould quashed rumours that Cleary was leaving the club to head to Manly. His assistant coach, Trent Barrett, landed the role shortly after.
Firstly, I am assured that Manly have not made an offer to Cleary. Secondly, Cleary was very happy at Panthers. He and his coaching team had done a wonderful job during the past three and a half seasons and I see no point ending his current tenure.
Cleary still had a lot of work to do at the club, and the idea of him coaching anywhere other than the Panthers had never been raised.
Panthers director Greg Alexander affirmed the club’s position at the end of last season regarding Cleary’s future after the coach was linked with the New Zealand Warriors.
“It’s almost inevitable. People start questioning things when you have a poor season, as we have, and the Warriors too, but there’s absolutely nothing in it,” Alexander said.
“It’s people piecing things together, but we’ve got complete faith in Ivan. With a halfway healthy side he’s shown what he can do, and the review is aimed at ensuring that happens.”
Gould made it known this week that he believed Penrith “burnt him [Cleary] out” before announcing former Brisbane Broncos coach Anthony Griffin’s three-year deal as head coach. Gould was expecting that Cleary wouldn’t admit to being burnt out, and the former coach is now holidaying in the Maldives.
The record books will show Cleary’s record coaching the Panthers was fourth best in their 49-year history with a success rate of 45 per cent recording 44 wins out of 98 matches. Only the late Ron Willey (66%), Gould (55%) and John Lang (51%) have better records with the club.
He lifted the club within one game of a 2014 grand final appearance in becoming the NRL’s Coach of the Year. Local juniors Matt Moylan, Bryce Cartwright and Dallin Watene-Zelezniak shone after a dark period where former coach Matt Elliott was reluctant to promote from one of the largest nurseries in the game.
In a difficult year of injuries to their spine, Penrith were in a battle on the last Saturday of the regular season to avoid the wooden spoon. Will Smith produced an exceptional performance at fullback, lifting the Panthers away from bottom of the table and into 11th spot ahead of Parramatta and Wests Tigers.
If there was a criticism of Penrith’s on-field performance this year you can point the finger squarely at the lack of points, the club ranking in last place by scoring 399 points. The ad-lib style that bought the club so much success the season prior was read a lot better by opposing clubs.
James Segeyaro was shut down and Matt Moylan’s influence was restricted before a season-ending injury against the Eels. Beside the Panthers’ spine being decimated, the lack of points may have been a result of the publicly played-out, club-imposed ban on Barrett and subsequent move to the northern beaches in 2016.
As Alexander said, with a half healthy side Cleary was doing a fantastic job. 2016 was looking bright with Trent Merrin moving to the club and a full-strength squad hitting the ground running for a bigger, better year.
No one anticipated the change unless you were closely linked with the club and had inside information.
Griffin heads into the hot seat at Penrith with a 52 per cent coaching record having won 56 of 106 matches with the Broncos. He took the baby Broncos to the inaugural National Youth Competition grand final with players like Ben Hunt, Josh Maguire and Andrew McCullough, who would become stars under his guidance at the top level.
For me, the darker, more concerning side of Griffin was his relationship with players.
It was well known his relationship with Peter Wallace and Ben Hannant strained during his tenure at Red Hill. Griffin denied this week there was any problem between him and potentially the No.7 going into the first game next year. Rumours will continue to grow about Wallace being banished to NSW Cup next year.
“It was extremely difficult the Ivan Cleary decision and it’s my decision, I made that call, I’ll stand by it and I’ll be accountable for it,” Gould said.
In business, accountability is a big thing. I will stand and applaud Gould if his gamble pays off.
Supposing it doesn’t, though. What happens to Gus?
Nearing 60 years old and with a heavy media load as a broadcaster with Channel Nine and columnist with The Sydney Morning Herald, Gould would still be an influence on the game with his strong opinions about how the game should be run.
He may, however, feel that if he can’t deliver the club the success which has evaded them since 2003 then it would be the end of the road.
Finally, I would like to express my condolences for Cleary. I have always found him approachable to fans whether it was with the Warriors or Panthers. He worked well with Gould to develop a plan for the future with a mixture of players in the twilight of their careers and promotion of successful juniors.
I feel extremely sorry for his son Nathan who missed out on winning a Holden Cup medal after opting to play for the Australian Schoolboys a week earlier in Brisbane. His future is now in limbo.
Late this week Cleary was linked with the Australian head coach role that’s been vacated by new Salford Reds coach Tim Sheens. After a disappointing Anzac Test against the Kiwis, he would be ideal replacement with the rugby league World Cup coming up in two years time.
Thank you, Cleary for a top job.
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