Thomas Jenkins of the Panthers is making a significant push to break the longstanding record for most tries scored in a single season, a feat set by Easts' Dave Brown in 1935 with 38 tries. Jenkins has already crossed the try line 22 times in 15 matches and has nine regular-season games plus the finals remaining to reach the record. If successful, Jenkins would surpass a mark that has stood for nearly nine decades and has been approached only a few times in premiership history.
Only three players have managed to score 30 or more tries in a season since Brown’s record was established. Ray Preston came closest with 34 tries in 1954 for Newtown, while Johnston achieved 30 tries in consecutive seasons spanning 2021 and 2022. Jenkins has demonstrated remarkable consistency this season, scoring multiple tries in 10 matches—a premiership record for consecutive games with two or more tries without a single-try game in between—surpassing Johnston’s previous best of eight such games.
Jenkins’ try-scoring success also appears closely linked with teammate Nathan Cleary, the Panthers' No.7. Jenkins has only scored once in his last six games when Cleary has not been on the field, highlighting the effective combination between the two players. Meanwhile, Johnston himself was pursuing Brown’s record earlier this season with 19 tries in 13 games but has been sidelined by injury, casting doubt on whether he will sustain his bid.
In other team news, the Tigers are fighting to break their finals drought, which has lasted since 2011—the longest current absence among teams in the league. With seven wins from 15 games, the Tigers must win six of their remaining nine to surpass the 12.5 regular-season wins average typically required to reach the finals over the past decade. Their upcoming fixtures include matches against lower-ranked teams such as the Dragons, who currently sit at the bottom of the ladder. The Tigers won their latest meeting against the Dragons 34-28 during last season’s Magic Round but have managed only two wins in seven encounters since 2022.
The Dragons have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks, securing a victory over the Broncos and narrowly losing to the Knights and Raiders. However, their defense remains porous, having conceded more than 20 points in their last 14 games—a streak matched only once before by the Titans in 2019-20 with 16 consecutive games conceding 20 or more points.
Meanwhile, the defending premiers, the Broncos, are enduring a challenging season with a seven-game losing streak—the worst for a reigning champion in over 70 years, dating back to Wests in 1953. Although a loss to the Sharks would not entirely eliminate their mathematical chances of reaching the finals, it would be unprecedented for a team to qualify after losing eight straight matches in a season. Historically, no club has made the playoffs under those circumstances.
The Broncos do have cause for optimism heading into their clash with the Sharks, having won three of their last four meetings, including a notable 16-point comeback victory last season that helped spark their eventual title run. However, the Sharks have a strong record in Origin-affected rounds, winning seven of their last nine games and most recently edging the Warriors 10-8, adding further difficulty to the Broncos' path.