There’s no doubt that the comeback story of the season must be Penrith Panthers’ latest cult hero Thomas Jenkins.
Last week the 24-year-old’s road to redemption came full circle when he was asked by NSW coach Laurie Daley to join the Blues camp to help train alongside 20 of the best players in the state.
The news was swiftly followed by more good news that Jenkins had secured himself a full-time NRL contract with the Panthers for the rest of the 2025 season and next.
Now he’s getting so much publicity because this type of comeback doesn’t happen very often and certainly no one at Penrith could have predicted it.
Especially after he spent most of the pre-season training with the St Marys Saints’ Ron Massey Cup side, a third-tier competition in the NSWRL.
Now in case you don’t know the back story, Jenkins left the Panthers at the end of 2023 to take up a first-grade wing spot at Newcastle, but things turned sour quickly and after just five games in the top grade he was relegated to reserve grade.
OK let’s not sugar coat it, he was dumped and his NRL career looked all but over.
But home is where the heart is and both Jenkins and his partner parted ways with the Knights one year into a two-year deal to move back to Penrith.
It’s funny because even though Jenkins didn’t have the highest profile, I started getting emails and messages from keen, eagle-eyed Panthers supporters at the end of last year that Jenkins had been seen at a local gym in Penrith.
Then came another message that he was training at St Marys, followed by sightings of him at the Panthers Rugby League Academy.
I kid you not, I’ve never had so many text messages about a former Penrith player as I did with Jenkins.
Panthers supporters were happy he was back. I remember I put out a few posts on X that Jenkins had been named in a trial match for NSW Cup and the buzz around him went crazy.
WHISPERS: I’ve heard that former Knights and Panthers winger THOMAS JENKINS has had a meeting with coach Ivan Cleary about the possibility of returning to Penrith this year.
The outcome of that meeting is unknown but the 23 year-old and his partner are definitely back in town.… pic.twitter.com/xwa3xJd9zv— Peter Lang (@PeterVLang) January 18, 2025
Every Jenkins-related post I put out after that just saw his popularity grow. The fans, it seems couldn’t get enough of ‘Jenko’. The fact that he was also playing some good footy in a side which earlier in the year wasn’t, made him stand out even more.
He really has become somewhat of a ‘cult hero’ with Panthers fans and his cult status continues to grow with every passing week and each passing achievement.
Now coming into Round 16, Jenkins is Penrith’s top try scorer with seven ‘meat pies’ and he has gone on to play 11 consecutive first grade games since his first-grade return against Melbourne in Round 3.
So, what is it about the man known affectionately as ‘Milky’ which makes him so popular with fans and the media?
Is it his unassuming down-to-earth personality? Is it his milky white skin and blonde hair?
Or is it that Australians just love a good underdog story come good?
Well, I think it’s all these things and more.
I also think it’s because Jenkins is starting to play some real good footy. He’s making breaks, diffusing dangerous bombs, and scoring tries.
One thing is certain however and you heard it here first: If ‘Milky’ keeps heading on this upward trajectory that he’s on now.
Next year, Laurie Daley may just be reading his name out as part of the 17-man Blues squad.
Now wouldn’t that be something.
Cult status immortality complete.
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.