Panthers Ivan Cleary Seek Spark Attack After Slow Start to NRL
Despite his team’s scoreless start to the NRL season, Penrith coach Ivan Cleary is not giving up despite the Panthers’ efforts to secure strike centre Izack Tago’s services.
Tago is on the verge of inking a new contract at the three-time back-to-back champion Panthers, which is a coup for the team considering the elite talent that has been acquired by rival teams in recent seasons.
While Cleary would not confirm that Tago had recommitted to the team, he did tell reporters on Monday that it was difficult to imagine that Izack, who is still only 21 years old, was one of our juniors.
“I can only see bigger things ahead for him; he’s already won two competitions and represented his country. Hopefully, he will be with us for.
Fixing the offence is Cleary’s more pressing worry following an 8-0 loss to Melbourne on the road in their season opener, even as the Panthers attempt to extend Tago’s contract.
Considering their loss to Wigan in the World Club Challenge, Penrith hasn’t crossed the line in over two hours of play.
Cleary, who lost to Parramatta in their two previous regular-season encounters, will be hoping for a significant improvement at home on Friday.
“Every team is similar at the start of the season … and we’re no different,” Cleary stated.
It’s evident that we’re still figuring things out in terms of training and playing more trials than others. Some guys have put in more time than others.
We also became a little awkward towards the conclusion of the game, trying to chase down points.
“I think we’re trying too hard. The Storm deserves praise for their excellent scrambling, but they also annoyed us.
We’ll learn a lot from the (Melbourne) game. It’s all the things you have to work out via games.
