In rugby league everyone loves a good comeback story and in this year’s Panthers squad there are two players, Thomas Jenkins and Isaiah Papali’i, who are seeking redemption and are hoping to make their mark at the four-peat Premiers.
They couldn’t have picked a tougher club to resurrect their careers at either. I mean Penrith’s culture and training standards are elite and quickly separates the men from the boys.
But if you’re going to climb a mountain and reach the top, it may as well be Mount Everest.
A quick textbook definition of ‘redemption stories’ and its meaning is; Redemption stories showcase characters who have failed in the past and are addressing their prior mistake or failure. Through hard work they try again and succeed.”
In no way can either Thomas Jenkins or Isaiah Papali’i be classified as failures, but both men have made mistakes over the last couple of years which have stalled their careers.
Let’s start with 23-year-old Thomas Jenkins. The 190cm, 95kg giant was just starting to make a name for himself at Penrith in 2023 when he decided to chase a regular opportunity to play first grade on the wing for the Newcastle Knights.
The spot was there for him too, especially after Dom Young signed with the Roosters. Jenkins started off strong, and played in the Knights’ first five first grade matches before he was dropped.
He never played first grade again.
When the Knights released him from the final year of his contract, Jenkins’ career was suddenly in free-fall.
Jenkins knew he needed to pivot and reboot his career and it wasn’t long before he and his partner were back living in Penrith.
Knowing there wasn’t a Top 30 spot available at the time, Jenkins took up an opportunity to play with St Marys in the Ron Massey Cup.
However it wasn’t long before his diligence at training and hunger to succeed saw him upgraded to a developmental contract with the Panthers.
Now while Jenkins’ redemption is still not complete, he is well on his way.
Jenkins has already put in several eye-catching performances in the club’s pre-season trial match versus Manly and their Round 1 game against the Newtown Jets where he scored two tries last weekend.
It wouldn’t surprise me to see Jenkins in the top grade sooner rather than later.
Second-rower Isaiah Papali’i may have less of a road to travel to redemption than Jenkins, given he is already in the club’s top 17, but the former 2022 Dally M Second-rower of the Year knows his form and career went into decline for the two years he spent at the Wests Tigers (2023-24).
So much so that the Tigers released him from the third year of this contract so he could take up a three-year deal with Penrith.
Papali’i has made a good start to the season but he still has a way to go before he reaches the summit.
He’s currently starting off the bench and trying to make an impact every time he runs onto the field.
He’s just past ‘base camp’, but the toughest part of the climb is yet to come.
Good luck, fellas!
Peter Lang
Peter Lang is an experienced sports writer, who has been covering rugby league for several decades. He first wrote Lang on League for the Weekender in the 1990s, and worked for Panthers on its famous Panthers Magazine for several years.