Penrith will go toe-to-toe with Cronulla in their preliminary final this week as they seek to advance through to their fifth straight grand final.
The Panthers made it look relatively straightforward when they brushed aside the Sydney Roosters in their qualifying final, but know a tough task awaits them against the Sharks, who have finally now shaken off an unwanted losing streak in the finals.
Craig Fitzgibbon’s side beat North Queensland 26-18 in their semi-final with one player in particular catching Jarome Luai’s eye.
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Jarome Luai singles out Braydon Trindall for praise ahead of prelim
Braydon Trindall has been one of the form players in the competition in recent weeks and produced a stellar display in the halves to guide his side to victory up in Townsville.
"The way he played last week and in the previous weeks while Nicho [Hynes] was out, he’s definitely upped his game," Luai said.
"He looks like he’s enjoying taking on more responsibility in his role. He’s playing full of confidence and he’ll be on our radar to watch out for."
The 25-year-old has experienced a rollercoaster year which saw him stood down by the Sharks after he failed roadside drug and alcohol tests in April.
Trindall was subsequently banned from the game and missed five weeks of action as he entered himself into rehab to address his issues that had put him at a crossroads in his career.
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"I had a bit of a tough time there," Trindall told foxsports.com.au.
"Yeah, 100 per cent I was worried (I’d get sacked), but the club backed me and I just want to repay them by playing some good footy."
Trindall put his name up in lights in the semis as he commanded the side ahead of Hynes on his way to registering two tries, one assist and running for over 100 metres.
The performance was so impressive Andrew Johns labelled him a $900,000 playmaker with the five-eighth now set to hit the open market to test his value from November 1.
"I don’t really know if he’d be in this type of form if he didn’t go through those bad experiences," Luai said in reference to Trindall’s earlier struggles that has since paved the way for his resurgence.
"Everyone makes mistakes and it’s about how you learn from them and better yourself.
"He’s done that, so congratulations to him and I can’t wait to go up against him."
