'I'll be back': Cleary vows to return after surgery

Read the original at ABC News (AU) ↗
ABC News (AU) · collected 2026-09-28

Quick Summary

Nathan Cleary, halfback for the Panthers, underwent surgery on his broken left ankle and expressed gratitude to supporters through an Instagram post where he wrote "I'll be back." Billy Slater suggested that changes to tackling rules may have influenced how Phoenix Crossland tackled Cleary, leading to the injury. Crossland will face a judiciary hearing on Tuesday night in hopes of being cleared to play in the NRL grand final.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-28, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

Nathan Cleary, the halfback for the Panthers, underwent surgery on his broken left ankle and posted a message to Instagram saying "I'll be back" while thanking supporters. The incident occurred during a tackle by Phoenix Crossland, which some believe was influenced by recent changes in tackling rules. Crossland is facing the NRL judiciary on Tuesday night but it's unlikely he will play in the grand final due to the injury circumstances. Cleary's absence impacts his team significantly as he is a key player in their lineup.

Written for “Cleary Vows Return After Surgery” on 2026-10-05, grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
2
claim-shaped sentences
Uncertain
0%
0 of 2 hedged
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Correction & hedging signals
60.8
corrections and hedging in what we collected; not a measure of accuracy
Outlets on this story
2
Sports
Narrative spread
1
articles carrying this framing
Analyzed 2026-09-28 · how these are computed

Story

📰 Cleary Vows Return After Surgery
Sports · 2 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
'I'll be back': Cleary's admission after surgery same event · 100%
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 no claims extracted 📰 publisher trust 61
“Both articles are reporting on Nathan Cleary's statement after his surgery, where he expresses his intention to return.”
Ivan Cleary declares Nathan Cleary fit to take on Knights in prelim final different event · 95%
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 4% hedged 2 of 47 📰 publisher trust 61
“Article A discusses Nathan Cleary's fitness for an upcoming preliminary final against Newcastle on Sunday, while Article B appears to be about a surgery and his declaration to return after it.”
Tears flow on both sides as 12-man Knights hang on after Cleary’s horror injury different event · 95%
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 7% hedged 3 of 45 📰 publisher trust 61
“Article A describes the match where Nathan Cleary got injured, while Article B reports on his response and recovery after the injury.”
Breaking: Knights star sent to NRL judiciary for tackle that broke Cleary's leg different event · 95%
ABC News (AU)
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 2 📰 publisher trust 61
“Article A reports on Phoenix Crossland being cited for a dangerous tackle that broke Nathan Cleary's leg, while Article B is about Cleary himself promising to return after surgery.”
Sandon Smith leads Newcastle out of an Immortal shadow different event · 95%
ABC News (AU)
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 2% hedged 1 of 42 📰 publisher trust 61
“Both articles list match results and future games but focus on different aspects: Article A emphasizes Sandon Smith leading Newcastle out of an Immortal shadow, while Article B highlights Nathan Cleary's surgery and return. They cover related events but do not describe the same specific incident.”
Marky Mark has set the NRL alight. But he’ll still have to earn Wallabies spot different event · 95%
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 13% hedged 4 of 30 📰 publisher trust 61
“The articles discuss different topics related to NRL players and their future in rugby, not the same specific incident.”
Live: Walker confirmed to start for Roosters in NRL prelim final different event · 85%
ABC News (AU)
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 12 📰 publisher trust 61
“While both articles contain score updates from NRL matches leading up to a preliminary final, they report different outcomes for the Dolphins vs Roosters match on September 25th.”
Live: Titans-Broncos derby to decide second NRLW grand finalist different event · 85%
ABC News (AU)
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 9 📰 publisher trust 61
“The articles cover different events with the second article including an additional match result and a player's statement about returning after surgery.”
Dynasties and destinies swing on Cleary's horror ankle injury different event · 85%
ABC News (AU)
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 3% hedged 1 of 29 📰 publisher trust 61
“Both articles list match scores and outcomes but Article A focuses on Cleary's injury impact while Article B emphasizes his vow to return post-surgery, indicating they cover different aspects of the situation.”
Roosters blow as Watson ruled out different event · 85%
ABC News (AU)
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 no claims extracted 📰 publisher trust 61
“While both articles list game scores and outcomes, they focus on different aspects (Cleary's surgery in A vs. Watson being ruled out in B), indicating separate reporting angles.”

Publisher

ABC News (AU) · 2055 article(s) · 2 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 2 correction(s)
2026-09-15
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2026-09-07
'Her career's finished': Fugitive Sydney developer's daughter avoids jail

Who wrote this

No reporter is named on this article.

Topics

Dolphins Knights Panthers Roosters Warriors

Subjects

Knights ORG · 4× Roosters ORG · 4× Panthers ORG · 3× Dolphins ORG · 2× Nathan Cleary PERSON · 2× Phoenix Crossland PERSON · 2× Sharks ORG · 2× Warriors ORG · 2× Cowboys ORG · 1× Rabbitohs ORG · 1×

Narrative

Fri, 11 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Rabbitohs 10, Knights 20 Sat, 12 Sept, 4:05 pm, Final score, Warriors 16, Dolphins 26 Sat, 12 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Sharks 26, Cowboys 16 Sun, 13 Sept, 4:05 pm, Final score, Panthers 19, Roosters 12 Sat, 19 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Roosters 46, Sharks 10 Sun, 20 Sept, 4:05 pm, Final score, Warriors 10, Knights 12 Fri, 25 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Dolphins 20, Roosters 36 Sun, 27 Sept, 4:00 pm, Final score, Panthers 14, Knights 22 Sun, 4 Oct, 7:30 pm, Game not started, Roosters versus Knights Nathan Cleary thanks supporters, vows to return after surgery In short: Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary wrote "I'll be back" in an Instagram post thanking supporters following surgery on his broken left ankle. Billy Slater said tackling rules contributed to the way Phoenix Crossland approached the tackle that injured Cleary.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-28
🔮 Phoenix Crossland will face the judiciary on Tuesday night in an unlikely bid to play in the NRL grand final.
2026-09-28 · ABC News (AU)
'I'll be back': Cleary vows to return after surgery · assertive framing

Claims (2 extracted, 0 hedged)

Fri, 11 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Rabbitohs 10, Knights 20 Sat, 12 Sept, 4:05 pm, Final score, Warriors 16, Dolphins 26 Sat, 12 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Sharks 26, Cowboys 16 Sun, 13 Sept, 4:05 pm, Final score, Panthers 19, Roosters 12 Sat, 19 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Roosters 46, Sharks 10 Sun, 20 Sept, 4:05 pm, Final score, Warriors 10, Knights 12 Fri, 25 Sept, 7:50 pm, Final score, Dolphins 20, Roosters 36 Sun, 27 Sept, 4:00 pm, Final score, Panthers 14, Knights 22 Sun, 4 Oct, 7:30 pm, Game not started, Roosters versus Knights Nathan Cleary thanks supporters, vows to return after surgery In short: Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary wrote "I'll be back" in an Instagram post thanking supporters following surgery on his broken left ankle. Billy Slater said tackling rules contributed to the way Phoenix Crossland approached the tackle that injured Cleary. asserted
that → start → Cleary
Phoenix Crossland will face the judiciary on Tuesday night in an unlikely bid to play in the NRL grand final. asserted
Crossland → face → final
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