Penrith will shoot for four straight premierships after winning through to the NRL grand final with a 26-6 triumph over Cronulla on Saturday night.
But superstar halfback Nathan Cleary will face the Melbourne Storm fresh from another painful blow to his injured shoulder late against the Sharks.
He finished the preliminary final on the bench as a precaution.
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The Panthers held a 10-2 lead at half-time and were threatened with a contest when Sione Katoa hit back for Cronulla at the hour mark.
Cleary, though, had other ideas.
The masterful No.7 shook off the Sharks’ defensive line to kick beautifully to Brian To’o in the corner, and another romp was on.
Paul Alamoti scored his second try of the match less than three minutes later while Liam Martin, who overcame a head injury assessment in the first half, crossed in the 77th minute to seal the win on a high.
The final try came with Cleary off the field.
He had grabbed at his left shoulder in the wake of contributing to a try-saving tackle in the corner, getting through more defensive work before calling it a night.
The fresh concern follows Penrith coach Ivan Cleary already confirming earlier this week that his son and star half is “highly likely” to need shoulder surgery in the off-season.
Nathan Cleary’s injury was first reported in the pre-season and flared up in a loss to Melbourne last month.
Cleary underwent full training loads this week ahead of facing Cronulla but is still participating in rehabilitation, having missed three weeks on the run to finals.
“It’d be highly likely he’ll have surgery, I’d say,” Cleary said on Thursday.
“But we’ll just get through what we need to do and weigh up the risks and options.”
The only other concern for the Panthers will be the availability of hooker Mitch Kenny, who was placed on report for a high shot that took out a slipping Sharks prop Tom Hazleton midway through the second half.
Penrith’s looming decider against Melbourne will be a rematch of their last finals defeat — the 2020 grand final.
While the Storm have not made it back since, the Panthers have conquered all comers and will now chase four straight premierships.
Next Sunday’s grand final will be the last Penrith appearances for Jarome Luai and Sunia Turuva before departing for Wests Tigers together while James Fisher-Harris is on his way to the Warriors.
