Ivan Cleary is challenging his Penrith side to draw on their history of sending departing players out on the right note as five-eighth Jarome Luai takes his first step on his Panthers farewell tour.
Luai's final season with Penrith before joining Wests Tigers begins with a trip to face Melbourne on Friday, with Cleary increasingly confident the maverick playmaker would be passed fit.
Hooker Mitch Kenny is sidelined with suspension. ld Club Challenge loss to Wi gan as he recovered from a shoulder injury, but Cleary is anticipating he will be given the green light to take on the Storm.
"He (Luai) is doing really well and we expect him to play," Cleary said on Monday.
"He's a big part of our team and I'm really excited for what he, Nat (Nathan Cleary) and the rest of the team can do.
"It's another year of growth and combination, and we've got a little bit extra with it being their last year (together)."
Losing star names and continuing to stay at the top has become a hallmark of the Panthers' evolution in Cleary's treble-premiership reign.
Matt Burton, Kurt Capewell and Paul Momirovski left after their 2021 triumph, then Api Koroisau and Viliame Kikau headed for pastures new after their defeat of Parramatta in 2022.
At the end of the 2023 campaign, Stephen Crichton quit for Canterbury and Spencer Leniu departed for the Roosters as premiership winners.
And Cleary is hoping Luai's impending exit can help fuel their bid for a fourth straight premiership.
"We've got a bit of history around the boys that have left,'' he said.
"A lot of them have had that little bit of something driving them a bit more.
"Certainly there's three or four of them that had their best seasons in their last year, so I hope that trend continues.
"It's hard to articulate what exactly that is, but they're all so close these boys, and the ones that have left as well.
"Everyone understands why they leave, and they love playing together.
"So I guess it's just channelling a lot of energy into making the most of every opportunity we get."
Cleary would not divulge the fitness status of the rest of the squad, who are nursing a number of bumps following their narrow defeat to Wigan.
Scott Sorensen missed the game with a knee complaint, while there is a question mark over Sunia Turuva's fitness.
Paul Alamoti is likely to come in and force a backline reshuffle if Turuva is unavailable.
Hooker Mitch Kenny is sidelined with suspension.
