Nathan Cleary cops brutal rejection as Wigan boss weighs in on Panthers Magic Round idea

Wigan chief executive Kris Radlinski says he would be open to entertaining Nathan Cleary's idea about playing the World Club Challenge (WCC) in Brisbane during Magic Round next season. The Panthers are facing mounting pressure to backtrack on their intention to pull out of the traditional showdown between the winners of the NRL grand final and England's Super League, citing their already crowded schedule that includes a round one clash in Las Vegas in 2024.

Following Wigan's win over Hull in the Super League grand final over the weekend - in which Cleary was in attendance - the Panthers star suggested in a social media post that the WCC showpiece could be played during Magic Round in May next season. Cleary said he accepted that there would be a number of logistical obstacles to overcome in order to make the game happen - the most obvious of which is that Penrith would likely have to sacrifice one of their byes.

One team out of the 17 in the NRL has to have their bye during Magic Round but under Cleary's suggestion the Panthers would forgo that and potentially have one less bye then the rest of the competition in 2025. Finding a way around that to make it a fair situation for all parties would be one of the most difficult challenges for the NRL to overcome but the idea has the support of the ARL Commission and Wigan CEO Radlinski.

The Warriors boss told The Sydney Morning Herald that his club would be willing to fly out to Australia in the middle of their season to take part in the WCC - which would effectively be the ninth match of Magic Round. “We want the game to go ahead, since we’ve won the grand final, I’ve sent a note to the NRL and to Penrith to see what are the chances of it happening,” Radlinski told SMH. “I did see Nathan’s comments, and if there’s a way we can make this work, we’d love to play at Magic Round...

“It will be a logistical challenge, but I’ve always said playing rugby league is a privilege... If you asked any retired player, ‘Would you turn down a game like that?’ they’d all tell you ‘not a chance’. This is why you play the game."

ARLC chairman Peter V’landys also praised Cleary's "innovation" in suggesting the WCC match be played during Magic Round and admitted it was something they were exploring. "I’m very impressed Nathan Cleary has thought of this," V'Landys said. "If it can happen, it will happen. There’s a bit of logistical work to be done, and a bit of planning to do, but we’ll investigate it.”

RELATED:

• Galvin in frustrating PNG display after Wests Tigers cop Luai setback

• Meninga's eye-opening call on Ponga's Kangaroos future after Hunt snub

• Fittler's telling comments on coaching links after sad family confession

Wigan's CEO admits that making the long-haul flight to Australia during the middle of their season "wouldn't be ideal" but said he was sure there was a way to make it happen. With Penrith already coming out and saying they don't want to participate in the WCC, Radlinski says he's keen to have further discussions and try to come to an agreement that all parties are satisfied with so the game can go ahead.

Wigan boss delivers Nathan Cleary brutal rejection

Radlinski spoke glowingly of having Cleary on hand to watch his side's Super League triumph over Hull that saw the Warriors complete an unprecedented quadruple of trophies. The Warriors chief added to the speculation about Cleary potentially moving to England to be closer to his Matildas star girlfriend, Mary Fowler, who plays for English heavyweights Manchester City. But the Warriors chief dropped a brutal rejection on Cleary by suggesting the English champions would "probably be the only club in the world that says he might not get into our team".

Radlinski added: “I mean that really respectfully because I love him as a player and I love him as a person. Him just making comments like that (calling for the WCC to be fit into the calendar) is a real shot in the arm for our sport... At the minute, we’ve got Bevan at number six and a guy at seven called Harry Smith who had an outstanding grand final, he really did. We’ve got him long term and I believe that he is the future number seven there.

“To have Nathan at the game and hear him making those comments, and I think he would have been impressed by what he saw at Old Trafford. I absolutely love him and I love his relationship with his father but I just don’t think he’d get into our team and that’s probably a headline right there.”