The big questions Ivan Cleary has to answer in 2019

Ivan Cleary took next to no time to turn the Wests Tigers into a gritty defensive unit and the Panthers should be no exception in 2019. This, coupled with their incredible young talent, bodes well for a big year. They reached the semi-finals in a reasonably successful season last year, but endured immense turmoil to make it as far after head coach Anthony Griffin was sacked weeks out from the finals. Rumours persisted he was on the way out all season, and despite dips in form and swirling speculation,
they finished with a flourish but were ultimately bundled out in the second week. Imagine what they can do with stability. The famously cool Cleary has one major decision to make heading into the season ahead — who plays fullback? Rising star Dylan Edwards has showed his attacking nous across the past few seasons despite playing just 25 NRL games. We predict he will unseat New Zealand fullback Dallin Watene-Zelezniak for the No.1 spot — although a case could be made for either. However, the biggest issue Cleary faces is how to quickly develop the burgeoning forward pack as depth is sure to become an issue around State of Origin time — particularly if there are a few injuries along the way.