The Penrith Panthers are just two wins away from a historic fourth-straight NRL premiership, but this also means there are only two games left in the tenure of some of the club's most significant players.
2025 will look a whole lot different out west, with club icons James Fisher-Harris and Jarome Luai both departing the team.
As they prepare for possibly their toughest title run yet, Fisher-Harris revealed the brutal conversation he had with coach Ivan Cleary following his decision to leave the club.
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James Fisher-Harris breaks silence on Panthers departure
Fisher-Harris has been a stalwart for the Panthers during his career, playing over 200 games for the club during his 12-year tenure with the team.
As he sets out to return home and play for the New Zealand Warriors, the forward said that the hardest part of the ordeal was telling his coach and teammates that he was leaving.
"[Telling Ivan Cleary and the Panthers] was probably one of the toughest things I've had to do in my footy career," Fisher-Harris said to 9News.
"It felt pretty f***ing shit holding it in, seeing them every day and not letting them know how I was feeling.
"When I got that off my chest to the boys and coach, it was a weight off my shoulders."
He also said that despite the move being finalised for some time now, the reality of his departure was only just beginning to set in.
"To be honest no. I don't know why, I thought it'd be sinking in now," he said.
"Been in the back of my head for a while but I think that really hit it, when I went back home and saw my pop."
Fisher-Harris has at least one more game in a Panthers uniform before he heads back to New Zealand, when they take on Cronulla this Saturday.
