Richie Barnett: Cleary's men leaving little to chance in finals drive

Nathan Cayless of the Eels is set to play his last match. Photo / Getty Images

Opinion

I popped into Warriors training this week with my kids to have a look at what was going on and I was extremely impressed with what I saw.

The players appeared relaxed, focused and extremely professional, while behind the scenes the preparations for what will hopefully be a strong finals campaign are meticulous.

Trainer Craig Walker is doing everything he can to ensure the players are a step ahead of their rivals. The technology these days is remarkable.

The players have masks that replicate altitude training, while the club has installed a heating system in the gym so the players can do heat training.

Not only does that make the body work harder, but it is also conditioning their bodies for September footy in Australia.

Micheal Luck was running around and he looked great, so hopefully he'll be back for the first finals match.

Talking to Lucky, he said the medical staff hadn't seen an injury quite like his gashed open leg before and weren't really sure how to advise him. So he just thought "to hell with it" and started running on it and he has pulled up really well.

That's quite amazing when you consider how bad his leg looked when it was sliced open against Manly. It looked for sure like he was gone for the season.

Coming back from a horrific injury is never easy, as I found out when in 2000 when my face collided with Wendell Sailor's head.

I spent seven days in intensive care and seven months recovering from facial injuries that the doctors described as "car crash material'.

For me it really put things in perspective, how important health is in terms of football and life in general. It made me a totally different person.

When I came back I was very reserved. I didn't want to get injured again and go back to that feeling I had, the trauma I went through. But ultimately I came back a stronger person and a stronger player, more focused and fitter than ever before.

I was also determined to succeed. With the finals almost here that's exactly how Lucky will be feeling. That he is so determined to get back out there as soon as he can says plenty about the character of the man.

I find it staggering that some people are suggesting the Eels don't have anything to play for tomorrow night. That's just ludicrous.

The club is pulling out all the stops for Nathan Cayless' final match and the players won't want the celebrations to fall flat.

It's also Feleti Mateo and Krisnan Inu's last match and they'll want to finish on a high. In fact all of the Eels will be desperate to finish well.

The club has been up and down and all over the place this season. The halves have been a problem for them all year.

But when they have clicked they have shown they can put on plenty of points, and with the Hayne train plane automobile running around at the back they are always a massive threat.

The Warriors have their work cut out for them but they certainly look up to the job.