Why Nathan Cleary may not be the best player in his family this weekend

Contributor
Peter Maniaty
Why Nathan Cleary may not be the best player in his family this weekend image

His famous older brother will run out for Penrith against the Wests Tigers in Round 21 of the NRL.

But fast-emerging playmaker Jett Cleary has already delivered a performance worth of the family name this weekend as the high-flying New Zealand Warriors NSW Cup side thrashed a hapless South Sydney Rabbitohs 68-6 in Auckland on Saturday.

The 20-year-old younger brother of Nathan Cleary and son of Ivan, Jett was heavily involved all match, setting up tries and crossing for a double of his own in the 12-try demolition.

Today’s match at Go Media Stadium was being played as a curtain-raiser to the New Zealand Warrior’s NRL clash with the Gold Coast, which sees under-fire Titans boss Des Hasler coach his 500th first-grade match.

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Metcalf out, Cleary up.

After spending most of 2025 in the Warriors’ Jersey Flegg squad, Jett Cleary was promoted into NSW Cup earlier this month to cover for halfback Tanah Boyd who himself was drafted into the Warriors first-grade side when Luke Metcalf was ruled out for the season following ACL surgery.

Since then, Cleary is yet to taste defeat as the Wahs continue to dominate this season’s NSW Cup competition, having won 18 of 19 matches—including the past 14 in a row.

Barring injury catastrophe for Andrew Webster’s first-grade side, it seems unlikely the younger Cleary will crack the NRL this season. 

But you can be sure the Warriors brass are keeping a close eye on the young star’s progress and an NRL debut at some stage in 2026 seems more than possible.

Then the NRL will have two Cleary number sevens to worry about.