Nathan Cleary Sparks Concerns with New Chest Injury Following Tough Charge-Down in Bulldogs Victory

Nathan Cleary believes he’ll likely wake up on Friday morning feeling the aftermath of a fresh injury following the Panthers’ thrilling 8-6 victory over the Bulldogs.

Fortunately for fans of Penrith and the Blues, it turns out to be just a bruised chest.

Cleary’s try in the 53rd minute was ultimately the match-winner, achieved after he successfully charged down a kick from Matt Burton.

In the process, the halfback copped the full impact of the kick directly to his chest but was fortunate enough to see the ball bounce kindly for him to score under the posts.

Reflecting on the game, Cleary recalled a previous experience during the 2022 Origin match in Perth, where he had charged down a kick only for it to take an unfortunate bounce over his head.

“I think I’m going to wake up with a bruised chest; Burto kicked it pretty hard,” he remarked after the game.

“I mentioned to Dad post-match about the charge down in Origin II last year in Perth, when the ball ended up bouncing over my head.”
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“As the ball was bouncing, I was just hoping it wouldn’t bounce over my head, and thankfully, it took a favourable bounce this time.”

Cleary entered the match with some apprehension regarding an injury. After appearing to struggle with a groin issue in Origin II, he opted out of the clash against the Warriors in Auckland.

However, he maintained a positive mindset throughout the week of training, and despite not kicking goals, he felt prepared for the encounter against the Bulldogs.

“My groin was fine – I didn’t experience any significant issues,” Cleary explained.

“This week I had two solid training sessions, which boosted my confidence. I’m very thankful to the physios from NSW and Penrith; they’ve invested a lot of time into helping me feel ready to play.”

“Getting back to goal-kicking is the next thing to address, but I was happy with how I played.”

Certainly, the Blues’ poor goal-kicking cost them a series-clinching win in Perth. When directly asked if he would be taking goal-kicks in Origin III, Cleary chuckled and replied: “We’ll have to wait and see.”