As reported by The Sydney Morning Herald, Cleary is still a couple of weeks away from making his comeback and faces a tight race against time to be ready for the Wests Tigers clash in Bathurst next week.
However, his recovery hasn’t progressed as quickly as the club had hoped. As a result, Cleary will delay his return until the following round when the team faces the North Queensland Cowboys.
The two-time Clive Churchill Medal winner sustained a hamstring injury during a match against the Brisbane Broncos earlier this season, which was a rematch of the 2023 Grand Final.
This injury marks Cleary’s second hamstring setback in recent times, as he was sidelined from the final two State of Origin games last year due to a left hamstring strain.
According to reports from The Herald, the latest update on the star halfback’s condition came at the end of March.
In a Channel 9 interview, Cleary mentioned, “Yep… we play Manly this week and then we have a bye.” When asked about the injury, he explained, “It’s a little hammy tear. It’s definitely not the same as last year. It’s probably what happened before I did the actual tear last year, it’s really minor. It’s the other leg as well.”
He further elaborated on managing the injury, stating, “It’s a conversation with the physio and how to manage it properly. If it was a grand final last week I could have played. It’s about managing the workload around extras and kicking. It’s something I never had to worry about growing up, I enjoyed doing it.”
Reflecting on past experiences, Cleary added, “Last year, I started to pick up a few niggles here and there. It’s more so the mental reps now and plan my week with that.”
