A defiant Nathan Cleary says he is taking several learnings from New South Wales’ agonising State of Origin defeat, as the footy star looks to bounce back with Penrith in the NRL.
Over the weekend, the 27-year-old led the Panthers to a huge 32-10 victory against Parramatta, with the star half-back coming off the bench to score a try.
But in the wake of Wednesday night’s thumping against Queensland, the Kangaroos star explained he had felt multiple different emotions, including ’embarrassment and self-loathing’.
‘Failure is filled with embarrassment, self-loathing and hurt,’ he wrote on Instagram on Monday.
‘It is also a test of character and in amongst that test is a chance to stand up, face it, learn from it and get better…
‘We move onwards and upwards.
Nathan Cleary has opened upon how he felt feelings of ’embarrassment’ after New South Wales’ State of Origin Defeat
But the footy star (pictured with girlfriend Mary Fowler) thanked those who had supported him in the week after his side’s defeat
The Penrith halfback explained that he was taking several learnings from Wednesday night’s defeat
‘Thank you to all those that support me unconditionally, big love.’
It comes after Cleary admitted that he would struggle to ‘ever fully get over’ the anguish of not retaining the shield.
‘In the past, after a poor Origin performance, I’ve probably just tried to squash it and act like it didn’t happen,’ he said.
‘This time I saw it as an opportunity to analyse it a bit more and try and delve deeper into why I didn’t perform the way I wanted.’
The Panthers star also revealed that he had held conversations with his dad, Ivan, and explained that the Panthers coach ‘made me feel a lot better’.
Cleary had been struggling with a groin injury during the series, which meant he was forced to hand over the kicking duties to Eels star Zac Lomax for the second and third Tests.
Despite the injury, Cleary struggled to grab the game by the scruff of the neck, stating he was hugely frustrated with his individual performance during the final Test.
‘It was a bit of a weird one. Pretty much straight after the game on Wednesday, Dad didn’t want me to back up,’ Cleary said, explaining he was insistent upon turning out for Penrith over the weekend.
Cleary took to Instagram to open up on his emotions following Wednesday’s Origin loss
Cleary opened up over the weekend on how he had ‘picked himself up’ after the defeat
Cleary dotted down for a try during Penrith’s victory against the Eels at the weekend
‘But then I sort of thought about it for a bit and thought if I don’t play I’ll just be sitting at home hating myself and continuing that sort of disappointment from Wednesday night, so I thought I need to get around the boys.
‘I think part of (why he backed up) is being there for these boys at Penrith and the other part of it was, selfishly, I wanted to move on.
‘I went through that grieving process … but you can only feel sorry for yourself for so long, and it’s about how you pick yourself up and go again and use it as a lesson.
‘I was extremely disappointed with the way I played and the way we performed. We let a lot of people down but the best way to sort of repay it is to come out and play well.’
Despite their disappointing start to the season, the Panthers are now fifth in the NRL ladder, having won five matches on the bounce.
And some fans have gotten excited on social media over the prospect that the Panthers could go on to seal their fifth-straight premiership.
‘They’re going to win it again this year aren’t they?’ one fan said after Penrith’s victory this weekend.
‘They are serious contenders again,’ another said.
The Panthers come up against a struggling Rabbitohs side this Friday at the CommBank Stadium.
