Brian To’o uses Blues axing and Penrith exit as motivation
- Ahead of Penrith’s preliminary final against Newcastle, Brian To’o faces a drastically different reality than the one he celebrated on the first day of spring last year, when...
- On September 1, 2025, at The Star in Sydney, To’o was awarded his second Brad Fittler Medal following a three-game Origin series where he scored five tries, made...
- Rather than viewing these changes as a decline, To’o channeled his omission from the New South Wales side into club form, scoring five tries across four September matches...
Ahead of Penrith’s preliminary final against Newcastle, Brian To’o faces a drastically different reality than the one he celebrated on the first day of spring last year, when he collected his second Brad Fittler Medal as NSW’s best player of the Origin series. Despite losing his incumbent Blues wing spot, departing his lifelong club for the PNG Chiefs in 2028, and missing out on a Penrith premiership last season, the four-time NRL champion insists his career trajectory remains upward.
From Origin Glory to Roster Realities at Penrith
On September 1, 2025, at The Star in Sydney, To’o was awarded his second Brad Fittler Medal following a three-game Origin series where he scored five tries, made seven tackle busts and five line breaks, averaged 241 running metres per game, and tied Michael O’Connor, Jarryd Hayne, and Josh Addo-Carr for the most tries ever scored in a sky-blue jersey with 11.
However, the past twelve months brought significant shifts. Penrith exited the 2025 preliminary final against eventual premiers Brisbane, and Blues coach Laurie Daley axed To’o for the series decider in Brisbane in July, choosing Jack Bostock for the wing position at Suncorp Stadium.
Adding to the transition, To’o confirmed he will finish his tenure with Penrith at the end of next season after signing a three-year contract with the PNG Chiefs beginning in 2028. Teammate Liam Martin acknowledged the turbulent period, stating via the Sydney Morning Herald that To’o experienced an up and down year initially.
Fueling a Late-Season Run Through Personal Motivation
Rather than viewing these changes as a decline, To’o channeled his omission from the New South Wales side into club form, scoring five tries across four September matches as the Panthers advanced through the finals series.
You’ve got to go back to clubland and play your best footy,
Brian To’o
To’o ranks second only to Billy Slater for the most tries scored in NRL finals matches, boasting 18 tries with a strike rate of a try every 1.06 matches compared to Slater’s 23 tries at a rate of 1.39.
That sparked a drive in me to perform my absolute best for my teammates here at the Panthers, with the goal of earning another opportunity with the Blues next season. You’re not always going to get everything right, and some things won’t go your way. If I feel like the team is better without me, then I’m all for it.
Brian To’o
Perspective Forged Through Early Hardship
To’o measures professional setbacks against a childhood spent sleeping on the floor of a three-bedroom fibro house in Mount Druitt shared with his parents and six siblings, alongside the 2008 loss of his younger sister Dannielle to cancer.
Against that background, missing a single State of Origin fixture represents a challenge rather than a crisis.
It just showed that I need to be better in my own personal game. To regain a spot in the squad, I must genuinely work for it. The jersey is never yours. You’re always the caretaker for the jersey. I’ve got to earn it back.
Brian To’o
As To’o prepares for Sunday’s preliminary final against Newcastle alongside long-time teammates Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo, Dylan Edwards, Liam Martin, and Moses Leota, his focus remains fixed on adding to his four premiership rings before his eventual departure to expansion club PNG.