South Sydney Rabbitohs forward Jai Arrow has promised the shoulder of Penrith Panthers Captain Nathan Cleary a thorough testing during their grand final rematch on Friday night.
Removed from the field in last year's grand final for an HIA after a reportable tackle from Viliame Kikau, many expect Arrow to hunt the colossal Fijian when they face each other.
But while Souths' faithful haven't moved on as quickly, Arrow told The Daily Telegraph personal revenge wasn't his motivation.
"He clocked me. He got me straight away on my first carry," the Origin rep said of Kikau's shot.
“It is something that happened on the field. You don’t take it off — you respect each other off the field. I won’t go looking for him.
“No doubt there will be a bit of fireworks. No doubt both packs will go after each other.”
When asked about the prospect of facing Nathan Cleary in his first game back from a shoulder reconstruction, Arrow wasn't coy about the Rabbitohs' intentions.
RELATED: Cleary cleared for return ahead of grand final rematch
"He obviously had a reco in the offseason and missed the first couple of rounds," he added.
“So he hasn’t had some footy under his belt. We will definitely want to test his shoulder out and test him defensively.
“He is obviously a quality player — he will no doubt do his job. But it is hard coming back after surgery and trying to find your groove.
“I have no doubt we will try to test him out. We will want to isolate it (the shoulder) and run as hard as we can.”
While a win to start Round 4 won't arrest any of the despair dealt down to the Bunnies last October, it will go a long way to steadying their young season following last Friday's victory over the Roosters.
Kick-off in the clash between the 1-2 Rabbitohs and the 3-0 Panthers is scheduled for 8:05 pm AEDT at BlueBet Stadium.
