Panthers coach Cleary warns rivals of more improvement to come

The Australian

4 days ago

Penrith coach Ivan Cleary is saying all the things that should create a little bit of fear among the NRL frontrunners as his team looks to make it eight wins straight against the Titans on Saturday.
The four-time reigning premiers are still 'hunting' after their shock slow start, can still 'get a lot better' and have several dominant seasons worth of late-season success driving a growing confidence they can contend for five.
Having spent time on the bottom of the NRL ladder in 2025, Cleary and his men know the job remains ahead of them to just stay in the top eight, with matches against top-four teams the Storm, Raiders and Bulldogs in the run to the finals.
Panthers coach Ivan Cleary says his in-form team can still play better. Picture: Tom Parrish
But what Cleary has seen in recent weeks, and past years, as well as what his players have done, has given him confidence about what's to come for his side that sits just outside the top four.
'Even over the last seven weeks our performances have continued to grow and I feel like there's more in us,' he said on Thursday.
'We've come through the Origin period where you team is just not together, sometimes they play, but they don't train throughout the week, so in terms cohesion and connection, I definitely think we can get better. It's exciting times for us.'
Cleary said there was 'definitely' a confidence that came with previous achievements, if only as a reminder to his players what they were capable of when they put the work in.
'We've got confidence from the past in terms of the core of our team have produced in big games over many years,' he said.
The Panthers are surging again. Picture:'But also this team, new circumstances, and it has grown in confidence over the last couple of months.
'If we can connect all of that together, it gives us a lot of belief we continue to work hard on the fundamentals. We have got a lot of belief that will hold up when it counts.'
But Cleary also knows his team needs to maintain the desire that has propelled them back to this point.
'We have come from the bottom and we are still in the bottom of the eight. We feel like we are still hunting,' he said.
'I'm honestly not really worrying about the ladder. We are worrying about the Titans.
'We will finish where we deserve. If that's in the eight, then a new competition begins.'