After a hellish three years with injury, Dolphins co-captain Tom Gilbert was on the brink of giving the NRL away so it is a personal triumph that he has emerged to lead the side in their first finals series.
Gilbert missed most of 2023 with a shoulder injury, all of 2024 after a knee reconstruction and then the final 13 rounds last season after undergoing surgery on a ruptured pectoral muscle and labrum tear.
It could have broken the 26-year-old forward and almost did.
True to character it was the determination not to let down others – his son Luca and trusted teammates – that had Gilbert thinking twice about continuing his rugby league career.
"There were a couple of times with my injuries that I was really close to giving it up and I definitely had the discussions about giving the boots away," Gilbert told AAP.
"I was struggling to enjoy the little moments with my boy when I got home, being sore and not being able to do little things at the park with him. Things like that mentally frustrated me.
"The biggest thing for me has always been about performing at my best level. I had a real feel within myself that I wasn't going to be able to contribute to that level and expectation that I had previously had.
"I didn’t want to hold the club back or hold a teammate back for obvious reasons. They were two things that stood out to me when I thought I had to make my mind up."
The former North Queensland firebrand is one of the most competitive players in the game and, instead of giving it away, he threw himself into 2026 with gusto and will lead the Dolphins in a qualifying final against the Warriors in Auckland on Saturday after a stellar year.
"I persevered through those tough times, had a crack, and decided to leave it all out there and take each game as it comes and enjoy what I have left," he said.
"This is my first full season here and my first in four years. For me to have the chance to be in the first finals team is a really nice reward, just to know my time at the Dolphins has been worthwhile.
"I am just really glad that through all those tough decisions I have come out the other side."
Gilbert, who represented Queensland in 2022 and 2023, has played as starting prop in recent weeks, but came off the bench in the middle of the season after a discussion with coach Kristian Woolf.
"For me, playing off the bench was a bit of a sigh of relief because I felt it was like ripping a band-aid off and saying, 'this is what we need you to do so focus on that'," Gilbert said.
"After that conversation I felt really comfortable and that a pressure gauge had been released.
"Not playing Origin was really good for me because it allowed me to play more games for the Dolphins, and reflect on my game and what the best players in the game looked like.
"It was about doing the little things well and letting the big things happen."
Gilbert’s last two major injuries occurred playing against the Warriors, but he’s not perturbed about Saturday's clash.
"I came out unscathed and got rid of that curse this year in a trial match against the Warriors and again in round seven," he grinned.
"We have a really strong belief that our footy can match it with the best and we genuinely believe we can win a premiership this year.
"We also know we have some tough opposition ahead of us and it's not just going to happen. We have to prepare well and enjoy it."
