Tessa Lee, Sports journalist reporting on global leagues since 2021.
Nathan Cleary says he is not concerned by ongoing criticism surrounding his State of Origin performances as the NSW halfback prepares for another series with the Blues. Despite winning multiple Origin series and establishing himself as one of the NRL’s dominant players, Cleary continues to face scrutiny over his record in deciding matches for New South Wales. The debate matters because Cleary remains central to the Blues’ hopes of reclaiming State of Origin success in 2026.
Cleary has played 17 matches for New South Wales, helping the Blues secure three series victories while earning player of the match honours twice during his representative career.
However, defeats in several game three deciders have fuelled continued discussion over whether the Penrith star has fully controlled the Origin arena in the same way he has dominated the NRL with the Panthers.
The 28 year old said he does not focus on external commentary regarding his standing in State of Origin history.
“At the end of the day owning Origin is subjective to anyone that wants to comment on it,” Cleary said.
“It’s probably not something I think about too much, to be honest.”
“I just want to be the best teammate I can and play up to the standards that I set for myself. In my mind, they’re the sorts of things I value.”
Cleary reflects on painful 2025 decider defeat
Cleary admitted last year’s game three loss left him deeply disappointed and led to some self reflection during the days following the series defeat.
The Penrith co captain was visibly emotional after the match as he was comforted by parents Bec and Ivan Cleary inside the NSW dressing room.
In the aftermath, Cleary acknowledged thoughts briefly crossed his mind about whether selectors could eventually lose confidence in him as the Blues’ chief playmaker.
“They’re probably thoughts that come into your head a bit,” he said.
“But there’s so much time in between, so much can happen. At the end of the day, it’s just a waste of energy thinking about that.”
Rather than quickly moving on from the loss by returning to club football, Cleary said he deliberately took time to process the disappointment properly.
“It was disappointing but I thought compared to past years, I sort of tried to understand what happened a bit quicker,” he said.
“With the fact that you go back to clubland, you can sort of sweep it under the rug quite easily but I sort of sat on it for a few days.”
“It gave me peace of mind to move on from it, grow from it, learn from it.”
Blues preparing for another Origin campaign
Cleary’s immediate focus is now on preparing for the opening match of the 2026 State of Origin series alongside new halves partner Mitch Moses.
The NSW squad completed its first full contact training session on Thursday, with Canterbury captain Stephen Crichton participating after managing a shoulder issue earlier in camp.
“He was sweet. It’s good to have everyone fully fit and in and amongst training. He looked good out there today,” Cleary said of Crichton.
The Blues enter the new series under pressure after another disappointing campaign in 2025, with coach Laurie Daley contracted through the end of this year’s series.
Cleary said his full attention remained on the current campaign rather than speculation about future coaching appointments.
Ivan Cleary speculation continues
Questions have continued around whether Ivan Cleary could eventually coach New South Wales after publicly expressing interest in representative football.
The four time premiership winning Panthers coach is expected to step down from Penrith after next season, increasing speculation surrounding his long term future.
Nathan Cleary, however, said he had not considered the possibility of his father taking over the Blues.
“I haven’t thought about it. It’s this series that I’m focused on,” he said.
“I’ve got Laurie as a coach and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working alongside him.”
Nathan Cleary’s NRL record remains one of the strongest of the modern era, with four premierships and multiple individual honours during Penrith’s dominant run since 2020.
Yet State of Origin continues to provide a different challenge, with scrutiny around the NSW playmaker unlikely to disappear until the Blues produce another successful series victory.