‘Unnecessary, silly’: Panthers’ ‘paranoid’ move slammed as Cleary chaos wreaks finals havoc

Amid Nathan Cleary’s battle with a foot injury, the Panthers have pulled out all the stops to ensure no information is leaked to the Knights ahead of their prelim showdown on Sunday.

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Penrith have fitted black tarpaulins around the fencing which surrounds their training paddock.

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Cleary is expected to play but won’t be 100% after suffering a foot injury against the Roosters a fortnight ago.

Who partners him in the halves is the real mystery. Jack Cole has been named at six, but it’s appearing more and more likely Jack Cogger will return to the starting line up given his strong kicking game may need to be relied upon.

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Journalist Dean Ritchie believes the Panthers’ training ploy is pointless.

“This is silly for words. Who cares,” Ritchie said on NRL360.

“It’s unnecessary. It’s silly. What are they trying to protect? I assume Nathan’s foot.

“It’s unlike Penrith to be this paranoid.”

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According to NRL360 host Braith Anasta, this move from the Panthers could be an attempt to hide who is training alongside Cleary at five-eighth.

“Cogger has got to start. That’s probably why they’ve got the tarps up,” he said.

Penrith’s unusual move comes as Kangaroos coach Kevin Walters conceded on Thursday that Cleary is a chance of being ruled out of the World Cup due to said injury.

“Yes, there’s a chance that Nathan could (miss the World Cup). We’ll have to wait and see how he pulls up,” Walters told CODE Sports.

Speaking from experience with a similar injury, Anasta can’t see Cleary backing up in the World Cup with premiership half Luke Keary agreeing.

“Bomber (journalist Pete Badel) has spoken to Kevvie who needs to start making plans going forward. It plays into the fact that it’s more serious than what’s being made out,” Keary said.