Former Broncos star Jharal Yow Yeh has offered Nathan Cleary a message of hope after the Panthers playmaker suffered a devastating ankle injury.
Cleary sustained a compound fracture to his left ankle during Sunday’s 22-14 preliminary-final loss to Newcastle, after being caught in a hip-drop tackle by the Knights’ Phoenix Crossland.
The Panthers captain had already been playing with a broken right foot and is expected to undergo several surgeries, leaving NRL fans anxiously awaiting further details about his condition.
Yow Yeh knows the pain and uncertainty of a serious ankle injury. He suffered a catastrophic injury against South Sydney in Perth in 2012, endured 10 operations and almost two years of rehabilitation before his career was cut short at the age of 24.
However, speaking to Daily Mail, the former Queensland and Australian winger warned that the visual similarities between the two incidents did not necessarily mean Cleary faced the same outcome.
‘I actually don’t think it’ll be as bad as what a lot of people think,’ Yow Yeh said.
Former Broncos star Jharal Yow Yeh believes Nathan Cleary may still have reason to hope after the Panthers star’s devastating injury
Yow Yeh shared an emotional message of support for Nathan Cleary following the Panthers star’s ankle injury
Yow Yeh stressed that his optimism was qualified, as the full extent of Cleary’s injury was not yet known.
The incident also brought back painful memories of the injury that abruptly ended Yow Yeh’s promising career.
‘I just feel so bad for him,’ he said.
‘I know that feeling. I know where he’s at when you’re sitting there and you’re just helpless.
‘You never think that that’s gonna happen to you. I can guarantee you I never thought in my life that I would ever do something like that.’
He also urged people not to draw firm comparisons between the injuries, pointing out that an ankle dislocation was a major component of his own setback.
‘Mine was a dislocation of my ankle joint,’ he said.
‘So I think a lot of people are trying to throw similarities. I’m not sure if he’s done that.’
Yow Yeh urged caution before comparing Cleary’s injury with the setback that ended his own career
Cleary was also managing a stress fracture in his opposite foot before the preliminary final
Yow Yeh said the specific nature of the fracture and the extent of any additional damage would be critical in determining Cleary’s recovery. He also acknowledged the added risks when a broken bone breaks through the skin.
‘I think the complication part is because it has pierced skin, there is a chance there where you can get an infection,’ he said.
Yow Yeh raised the question of how Cleary would feel when he eventually returned to the demands of professional football.
‘It’s just whether you’ll have pain, I suppose, when he comes back, because we’ve gotta remember you’re holding your body weight on your ankles, your legs,’ he said.
‘Keep in mind, I wasn’t a kicker. I didn’t kick the ball a lot like him. I didn’t kick the goals. He’s still a very healthy young man.’
Physiotherapist Brien Seeney, who provides injury analysis under the NRL Physio name, also highlighted the uncertainty surrounding an open fracture.
In his initial assessment on X, Seeney said the usual recovery range for ankle fractures and dislocations was three to four months, but warned Cleary’s situation could be more complicated.
‘The open nature of the injury increases the uncertainty here and it might not be so clear cut,’ Seeney wrote.
Yow Yeh believed access to trusted specialists in Sydney would benefit the Panthers halfback
Physiotherapist Brien Seeney warned that the open nature of Cleary’s injury made his recovery timeline less certain
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He explained that an open wound greatly increased infection risk and would require a washout during surgery to reduce that risk.
Yow Yeh believed Cleary’s access to the club’s trusted medical specialists in Sydney was a reason for encouragement.
‘He’s got everyone that the club would trust in the vicinity,’ he said.
‘I’ve got no doubt that the club doctor or the surgeon would have been called immediately.
‘We’re talking about the best player in the world, right? Like, arguably best player in the world.’
He expected there would be no shortage of specialists willing to help the Panthers halfback.
‘I can guarantee you there’s that many surgeons putting their hands up to be inside that room to help,’ he said.
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