After waiting nearly two seasons in reserve grade for his long-awaited NRL debut for NZ Warriors, Jett Cleary disappointed no-one with a performance that hinted at his potential, once he becomes a first-grade fixture elsewhere.
With veteran halves Te Maire Martin and Chanel Harris-Tavita initially named, but ultimately ruled out against Newcastle Knights in the penultimate round of the regular season, Cleary was thrust into a surprise cameo that had his family scurrying to Sydney airport for a trans-Tasman flight.
The Auckland-born youngest son of former Warriors player/coach Ivan Cleary – who guided the club to grand finals in both capacities – and brother of NRL superstar Nathan Cleary took the field in No.23 and proceeded to torment his opponents, steering his team back from an early 16-0 deficit to win 46-32 at Mt Smart.
His appearance made Jett and Ivan Cleary the second son-father combination to suit up for the Warriors, following Riley and Steve Price earlier this season.
While he didn’t appear personally on the scorecard, Cleary Jnr, 21, had his fingerprints all over a contest that – ironically, given his family connections – thrust the Warriors back past Penrith Panthers to the top of the competition table.
“I just thought he looked like he belonged,” remarked Warriors skipper Mitch Barnett. “For a young half, they just want to tackle well and kick well.
“I thought he defended really well… Jett had his gloves up. He’ll only get better each time he takes the field now.
“I thought he was really composed and it was up to us to step up around him. Our communication had to pick up around him, so he could slot around easier, but I was really impressed with him.”
Credited with three try assists, Cleary probably had several others that Americans would describe as ‘ice hockey assists’ – the pass before the final pass.
One of those came on the Warriors’ opening try of the game to second-rower Jacob Laban.
“When they pressured him on the last play, he threw the ball back to Wayde [Egan] and he threw it to Jakey,” reflected coach Andrew Webster. “That was a really good play that got our night going really.”
Cleary delivered the ball to lock Erin Clark for his try that brought the Warriors back to level terms, then hoisted a kick that replacement wing Adam Pompey regathered and offloaded to forward Demitric Vaimauga for the halftime lead.
His up-and-unders didn’t seem overly high, but hung just long enough for the chasers to contest. After halftime, he lofted another that Laban claimed to send centre Ali Leiataua across.