Cleary near-perfect as milestone man shines; Sharks’ standout amid costly flops — Player Ratings

In a tight, and at times sloppy, contest, Nathan Cleary once again proved the difference as the Panthers marched to their fifth straight grand final.

He wasn’t the only standout Panther, with a pair of outside backs and the club’s milestone man playing brilliant supporting roles.

As for the Sharks, Siona Katoa had one of the games of his career, while Braydon Trindall was solid, but it was a night to forget for Nicho Hynes and most of the club’s forwards.

Read below for both the Panthers and Sharks player ratings after their preliminary finals clash!

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PANTHERS

1. Dylan Edwards — 8

In his 150th game, Edwards did what he usually does. Aside from a 55th minute error from a Hynes kick he was solid as a rock. Made some great defensive plays and threatened with ball in hand. Finished with 209 metres, seven tackle breaks and two line breaks.

2. Sunia Turuva — 8.5

Pretty close to Penrith’s best on ground. Saved two tries with brilliant defensive plays in each half. Had a try ruled out in the 58th minute. Finished with 182 metres from 21 runs.

3. Izack Tago — 6

In a game dominated by his side’s left edge, Tago did his job whenever required. Was strong in defence but hardly got a chance in attack.

4. Paul Alamoti — 8

What a breakout performance from the young man. Set the tempo early with a strong shot on Katoa early and continued on with that standard. Ran hard, hit hard. Scored twice. Finished with 115 running metres and 21 tackles, just two misses.

5. Brian To’o — 8

Strong as an ox bringing the ball out of his own end. Finished with 189 metres and try set up by some Cleary brilliance. Cements himself as one of the greatest wingers ever with each game.

6. Jarome Luai — 7.5

Took control of the side early, then allowed Cleary to do his best work. Defended well, ran the ball well and took control once Cleary went off late, setting Martin up with a deft grubber. Could be donning the No.7 next week.

7. Nathan Cleary — 9

Turned it on, as he always does on the big occasions. Defended strongly to force Kennedy into touch early. Kicked a 40/20 in the 22nd minute to get his team on the front foot. Penrith scored off the next set from his bullet pass to Alamoti. Turned adlib footy into points in the 63rd minute to set To’o. Magic. Suffered a late scare with his shoulder that will be one to watch this week.

8. Moses Leota — 6

Did what was required of him in 40 minutes without setting the world on fire. A solid, reliable performance from one of the most solid and reliable props in the game.

9. Mitch Kenny — 6.5

Strong as always defensively but had a few moments of poor service that could’ve cost his team on another night. Had a couple of nice runs once the game opened up. On report for a high shot on Hazelton but should escape trouble.

10. James Fisher-Harris — 6.5

Much like Leota. Did what was needed of him and finished with 14 runs and 108 metres.

11. Luke Garner — 6

Mixed night from the former Tiger. Made a costly error coming out of his own end. Was replaced with Lindsay Smith after an hour. Not the best game, but not the worst either.

12. Liam Martin — 7

Went off with HIA after 9 minutes. Bounced back to put in a strong shift for his side without setting the world alight. Couple of errors didn’t help his cause. Scored a try late to ice his side’s win.

13. Isaah Yeo — 8.5

Became the most capped Panther of all time in typical Yeo fashion. Didn’t have many eye catching plays but got through a mountain of work and picked the right moments to run and pass. Simply exceptional. Topped his side’s tackle count too.

BENCH

14. Brad Schneider — N/A

Came on with five minutes to go after Cleary’s injury scare.

15. Lindsay Smith — 6.5

Injected early for Martin, played on an edge without fuss before shifting into the middle and continuing his stellar year. Arguably no better replacement for Fisher-Harris in the competition.

16. Liam Henry — 7

Injected himself into the game right from his first involvement. Strong with the ball and in the tackle. Ran for the 2nd most metres of any Penrith forward and made 30 tackles, the third most in his side.

17. Matt Eisenhuth — 6

Missed four tackles in just 24 minutes but didn’t have his blemishes exploited.

SHARKS

1. William Kennedy — 7

Looked threatening whenever he got the ball without breaking the game open in Penrith’s half. Solid under Cleary’s testing kick game all night.

2. Sione Katoa — 8.5

Was brilliant all night. Nearly scored from Trindall’s early 40/20 attempt, looked comfortable under the high ball all night and scored a beautiful acrobatic try in the 60th minute to get his side back into the game. Finished with a team-high 150 metres.

17. Siosifa Talakai — 5

Lucky to have stayed on the field after a late shot on Luai. Understandably struggled to assert himself on the contest in the same way as when he’s injected off the bench. Hooked with 20 to go, summing up his night.

4. Kayal Iro — 7.5

It’s hard to believe he’s in his first season of first grade. Carried the ball really well and made a tackle on To’o that stopped a certain try in the first half. Could’ve scored in the 2nd. A great game from the young man.

5. Ronaldo Mulitalo — 6

Competed with a Trindall crossfield kick brilliantly before the Hynes no-try but unfortunately got his fingertips to it and lost it forward. Limited to 77 run metres. Not his finest outing.

6. Braydon Trindall — 7

Played with all the swagger of a man in the form of his life. Almost nailed an early 40/20. Kicked brilliantly throughout. Had a hand in the Katoa try in the 60th minute but made a costly error attacking Penrith’s line.

7. Nicho Hynes — 6.5

Quiet early on in his 100th game. Let Trindall kick and organise. Nearly had a try in the 21st minute. Grew into the game, straightened Cronulla’s attack often and had several nice kicks in the second half but needed to take a bit more control with the game on the line. Ram the ball just twice for 11 metres.

8. Toby Rudolf — 7.5

On report for a trip on Yeo early and was lucky to have avoided the bin. Recovered from that brain fade to put in a strong shift, running the ball hard and tightening the Sharks middle up in the defence. Was the only Sharks forward to run for 100-plus metres.

9. Blayke Brailey — 6.5

Had a couple of nice runs out of dummy half and made 48 tackles, but missed seven. Not his finest performance.

10. Oregon Kaufusi — 6

Strong hit up off kick off but failed to match it with Penrith’s brilliant pack all night. Finished with 72 metres from 10 runs.

11. Briton Nikora — 6.5

Strong as always in defence and with ball, setting up Katoa’s brilliant try in the second half. Like the rest of his forwards, didn’t do enough to stand up to Penrith’s pack.

12. Teig Wilton — 6

Didn’t dominate the game in any sense. Ran for 84 metres from 12 runs and crucially missed seven tackles. Did make 42. A night to forget.

13. Cameron McInnes — 7

Worked as hard as he always does, especially in defence where he made a game-high 49 tackles, missing just once. Couldn’t make inroads against the Panthers’ pack. Linked play nicely at times.

BENCH

15. Jack Williams — 6

Only played 19 minutes. Brought some energy off the bench without changing the game’s momentum.

16. Royce Hunt — 6

Costly offload when his side were on the attack in the 50th minute. Got through some good work in just under half an hour. Struggled like the rest of his forwards.

17. Thomas Hazelton — 6

The cult hero had a couple of nice moments but, as is the case with the rest of his pack, wasn’t able to get on the front foot enough.

18. Daniel Atkinson — 5

Came on for Talakai with 20 to go and didn’t really get too involved. Tough ask for a natural half to play on an edge.