On the first day of spring last year, Brian To’o was smelling all the roses that rugby league had to offer.
asserted
league → smell → that
In an all-black suit with a silver chain looped from his lapel, To’o walked onto a stage in front of 500 guests at The Star in Sydney to collect his second Brad Fittler Medal as NSW’s best player of the Origin series – the cherry on top of four straight premierships with Penrith from 2021 to 2024.
asserted
To’o → loop → 2024
He is no longer part of a reigning premiership team.
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He → reign → team
But good luck telling To’o this is the beginning of a slippery slide.
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this → tell → slide
“The sky’s still the limit, man,” says the softly spoken Samoan ahead of Penrith’s preliminary final against Newcastle on Sunday.
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Samoan → ’ → Sunday
“I want more.
asserted
I → want → more
I want to be able to do way more than has already been written.
asserted
I → want → more
“There is still a long way to go, and by the time I hang up the boots, I want to be happy with myself and what I have done for the game.
asserted
I → be → game
It’s a strange thing to hear from a man with four premiership rings.
asserted
It → ’ → rings
In a professional sense, To’o’s past 12 months could loosely be described as adversity.
uncertain
months → describe → adversity
Penrith were bundled out of the 2025 preliminary final by eventual premiers Brisbane.
asserted
Penrith → bundle → Brisbane
To’o was axed by Blues coach Laurie Daley for a famous decider in Brisbane in July.
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To’o → ax → July
Then came the confirmation that his time at the only NRL club he has known has an end date, after signing a three-year deal with the PNG Chiefs from the 2028 season.
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he → come → season
Real adversity, To’o would argue, is something else entirely.
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To’o → argue → ?
It is sleeping on the floor of a three-bedroom fibro house in Mount Druitt shared with his parents and six siblings.
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It → sleep → parents
It is watching Mum and Dad make sacrifices so their children did not have to.
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children → watch → sacrifices
It is losing his younger sister Dannielle to cancer in 2008.
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It → lose → 2008
Against that backdrop, missing an Origin game barely registers on life’s scale of hardship.
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missing → miss → hardship
“If I’m gonna be able to come back into the team, I’ve got to earn it.
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I → go → it
You’re always the caretaker.”Brian To’o
That doesn’t mean it didn’t sting.
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it → ’re → ?
The disappointment of being overlooked for Jack Bostock in game three at Suncorp Stadium was real.
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disappointment → overlook → Stadium
To’o says it “100 per cent” became personal motivation for the remainder of Penrith’s season.
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it → say → season
The winger has scored five tries in his past four games as the Panthers move through September – the month they have made their own for most of this decade.
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they → score → decade
To’o (18) is second to Billy Slater (23) for the most tries scored in NRL finals matches.
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To’o → score → matches
“You’ve got to go back to clubland and play your best footy,” To’o says.
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To’o → get → footy
“That gave me motivation to do my best for my brothers here at the Panthers, and hopefully next year I get a crack [for the Blues].
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I → give → Blues
“You’re not always going to get everything right, and some things won’t go your way.
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things → go → way
If I feel like the team is better without me, then I’m all for it.
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I → feel → it
“It just showed that I need to be better in my own personal game.
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I → show → game
If I’m gonna be able to come back into the team, I’ve got to earn it.
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I → go → it
You’re always the caretaker for the jersey.
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You → ’re → jersey
I’ve got to earn it back.
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I → get → it
That attitude goes some way to explaining why Penrith are back here again.
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Penrith → go → way
Their premiership dynasty may have ended last year, but there is every chance that flame is reignited.
uncertain
flame → end → ?
What makes Penrith’s sustained success all the more remarkable is the talent who have walked out along the way: Matt Burton, Kurt Capewell, Api Koroisau, Viliame Kikau, Stephen Crichton, Spencer Leniu, Jarome Luai and James Fisher-Harris.
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who → make → way
But even his time at the foot of the mountains comes with a countdown.
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time → come → countdown
The opportunities to add another premiership alongside Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo, Dylan Edwards, Liam Martin and Moses Leota – men with whom he has shared almost every significant moment of his career – are finite.
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he → add → career
“I’m sure Bizza [To’o] would say he had a bit of an up and down year to begin with,” Martin said.
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Martin → ’m → year
“But credit to him, he’s worked hard, and he’s really hitting his form at the right time.
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he → work → time
He’s such a key part of our team.
asserted
He → ’ → team
…and 21 more, not listed.
The Aporia
