'Pleasure to watch': Cleary's praise for Dally M favourite

Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary has described his Storm opposite Jahrome Hughes as the best player this season.

Hughes believes Cleary is the best player in the game.

The battle between the star playmakers is expected to have a significant influence on the outcome of Sunday’s NRL grand final and the pair have nothing but admiration for each other.  

“I think he's definitely the best running half back just about … that I’ve ever seen, really,” Cleary said of Hughes.

“The way he takes on the line, he's constantly a threat and I think he's added a lot of other stuff to his game, as well, just in terms of game management and ball playing.

“He's been actually a pleasure to watch the whole year, he's been on fire and he’s been best player this year for sure.”

Hughes said: “I think Nathan’s probably the best player in the game. He’s the full package. If he’s not the best in the game, he’s definitely top two”.

Cleary, who returned from a shoulder injury in Penrith’s opening finals match, produced two try assists in the qualifying final against the Roosters and three try assists in last weekend’s triumph against the Sharks.

Hughes is the hot favourite to win the Dally M Medal on Wednesday night after a season that has included 26 try and line break assists, 12 tries, and a highly influential kicking game.

He was on 16 points when Dally M voting went behind closed doors after 12 rounds but had only played eight matches and was in outstanding form as Melbourne secured the minor premiership. 

The Storm and Kiwis halfback scored three tries in last weekend’s preliminary final against Sydney Roosters and scored a hat-trick against the Broncos in the final match of the regular season.

It is only natural, then, that questions would be asked about the duel between the player who looks set to be crowned the best of the season, and one that is largely considered to be the best active player in the game in Cleary.

“I don’t see it as a battle between me and him,” Hughes said. “It’s a battle of two great teams going head-to-head, and hopefully putting on a great game.

“It’s pretty surreal what they’ve been able to do, their fifth Grand Final in a row. They’re well deserved, because they’re obviously such a great team and a great club.

“Without trying to point it as a player versus player thing, I think it’s going be a good team, team versus team.”

Cleary dominated questions about the Panthers put to the Storm players as they prepare to head to Sydney to take on Penrith in the decider.

Parallels have been drawn between Cleary’s shoulder injury and Cooper Cronk’s fractured shoulder blade in the 2018 grand final. The Roosters defeated the Storm 21-6 that year, partly because – as Hughes tells it – the group focused on the wrong things.

The Kiwi star did not play in the decider but was at the club after joining from the North Queensland Cowboys in 2017.

“I think if we focus too much on him and his injury, then that’s not going to go well for us,” Hughes said on Monday.

“A few of the boys that played in the 2018 Grand Final, they brought up that they focused on Cooper too much, more than they needed to, and it probably came back to bite them.

“We’ve fully learned from that as a club, and we probably won’t be looking at that too much and will be more focusing on what we could do as a team to be better.”

Cleary said he was fit and his shoulder wouldn’t be a concern in the grand final, despite him clutching at it after making a try saving tackle on Cronulla centre Kayal Iro last Saturday night.

“The thing that happened on the weekend was just a little scare, but it’s fine and I pulled up sweet,” Cleary said.

“At the end of the day I am confident in the work I have put into it. If something was to happen it happens but I wouldn’t put myself out on the field of I wasn’t confident.”