Nathan Cleary is about to undergo a third bout of surgery, but Penrith officials remain optimistic their superstar playmaker will be fit for round one next season.
Just days after Cleary’s management informed the Papua New Guinea Chiefs the halfback would be staying put – and working towards a four-year extension, with the final two years in his favour – the club’s focus has been on his recovery.
Cleary underwent emergency surgery to repair a broken fibula and dislocated tibia hours after he was the victim of a hip-drop tackle in Penrith’s preliminary final. Because one of Cleary’s bones pierced the skin, he had to be operated on immediately.
A couple of weeks after surgery on his left leg, Cleary had his fifth metatarsal repaired in his right foot, which he had injured a couple of weeks earlier in the qualifying final against the Roosters.
Cleary has been recovering at his parents’ home on Sydney’s northern beaches, is out of both casts, and moving around on a scooter. Cleary is yet to put weight on his left leg.
Well-placed Penrith sources confirmed Cleary would return to hospital in the next week to have tightrope surgery on the left ankle. The procedure is done to treat severe high ankle sprains.
Tightrope surgery involves a high-strength braided rope, which unites the two bones at the ankle and gives ultimate stability.
Cleary ruptured his syndesmosis in the same tackle that led to an apologetic Newcastle hooker Phoenix Crossland being handed a five-match ban. Crossland is eligible to return for New Zealand as soon as Saturday night against Tonga.
Provided there are no complications with the latest procedure, Cleary could be walking without a mobile device in the next fortnight.
Reece Walsh and Sam Walker are two Australian players who underwent tightrope surgery late in the season.
The same Penrith sources are optimistic Cleary will be fit to play in the club’s opening round, potentially against St George Illawarra, at the Panthers’ new $309m stadium.
Cleary’s injury was not too dissimilar to the one suffered by Mitch Kenny , who also broke his leg and ruptured his syndesmosis as a result of a hip-drop tackle earlier in the year. He was sidelined for five months due to complications.
Cleary, who turns 29 next week, is expected to start formalising a new deal, which has been one of the biggest talking points of the year .
The contract is expected to be worth about $1.7m a year, which reflects his value, but is still short of the $2m tax-free deal the Chiefs were prepared to table, not to mention the minimum $500,000 in third-party deals he stood to potentially earn.
A four-year deal would take Cleary through to 2031, or 16 seasons in the top flight at the club.
In other Penrith medical news, Kangaroos skipper Isaah Yeo will be booked in for surgery the week after Australia exit the World Cup to repair a ruptured pec. He will be touch and go for the start of the season.
Fullback Dylan Edwards also underwent a shoulder reconstruction, and is in no doubt for the season opener.
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