Luke captained the Panthers' under-20 side to premiership glory in 2015, but a series of injuries and squad depth meant he had to play in reserve grade until finally breaking through to take on Canberra last Sunday.
The side he captained to a flag contained current stars Jarome Luai, Dylan Edwards and James Fisher-Harris, and rolled a Manly side boasting Tom Trbojevic.
While many of his former teammates went on to enjoy NRL premiership glory last season, Luke, 26, waited patiently for his big chance.
"It's a great story, one of perseverance, he had a dream and he just wasn't going to let it go," Cleary told reporters.
"It's a great story for everyone out there, no matter what field you're in, if you're getting knocked back or things aren't working out for you just to keep at it.
"He looks more comfortable this week, hopefully less energy burnt up through the week."
Cleary admitted getting games into Luke was made somewhat more important by starting hooker Api Korisau's departure to West Tigers at the end of the year, along with a host of stars soon to be involved in State of Origin.
"(Fellow hooker) Mitch Kenny certainly didn't go out of the team cause of form, and Soni's form was excellent so I thought it was a good time to bring him in while he's playing well and had a lot of games under his belt," he said.
"It's a bit of everything, but the main thing is we didn't think we were going to lose anything."
Cleary confirmed star winger Brian To'o was a chance to play in round nine, but was "not too far away" from playing either way.
The Panthers face Gold Coast on Friday evening.
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