There were grave fears across the rugby league world as the Dolphins entered their debut NRL season.
Wayne Bennett’s franchise had missed out on a host of marquee names including Cameron Munster, Harry Grant and Reece Walsh as they built their first ever top 30 roster.
With a clean salary cap to burn and cheques ready to be written — the 17th franchise were expected to land a big fish.
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But instead, Bennett, alongside recruitment guru Peter O’Sullivan, slowly built a squad filled with experienced veterans and NRL castaways.
Legendary prop Shane Webcke shared the concerns of the masses and asked Bennett how he thought the Dolphins would fare.
“The longer it went in the lead-up to it (the season) and they couldn’t seem to get any decent sort of signings, I thought ‘they are going to get hammered every game they play’,” Webcke said this week on the Big Sports Breakfast
“The only thing that sort of made me think they would sort of be competitive was the fact that Wayne was their coach.
“I see Wayne quite a bit outside of the game… we don’t talk about footy a lot, but when we do I said ‘how you going?’, because I was starting to get a bit nervous for him.
“He said ‘no, we will be okay’.”
Once again, the master coach was right.
After 10 rounds the Dolphins have won six and lost four, taking the scalps of premiership heavyweights the Roosters, Raiders and Sharks along the way.
Following their 36-16 demolition derby of Craig Fitzgibbon’s side in Magic Round it became clear the Dolphins had maximised the talent of several within their squad.
Commentator Dan Ginnane said the Redcliffe-based club were filled with “wonderful stories of second chances and resurrections”.
Now rugby league fans are starting to believe the Dolphins can do the unthinkable and play finals football in their debut season.
Here, foxsports.com.au breaks down the players who have exceeded expectations under Wayne Bennett!
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CONNELLY LEMUELU
Lemuelu played 24 games across three seasons at the Cowboys, failing to cement a starting spot in North Queensland. The 24-year-old made his NRL debut on the wing in Round 6 of the 2020 season. In 2021 Lemuelu played in the centres, signing a one-year contract extension for 2022. That year he only played four games and fell down the pecking order, shifting to a backrow role and sitting behind Jeremiah Nanai and Heilum Luki. Lemuelu initially signed a one-year deal with the Dolphins for the 2023 season before he was quickly re-signed for a further three years after his barnstorming campaign. Since Round 4, the dangerous ballrunner has started on an edge in every game, scoring four tries to date. Under Bennett, the young gun has more linebreaks in 10 games than he did in his whole Cowboys career to go with only two less offloads. He also has six wins with the Dolphins, one more than the 20 games he started for the Cowboys. Lemuelu is also averaging double the amount of offloads and 11.9 more tackles in starting appearances. Rugby league legend Greg Alexander labelled Lemuely a “revelation” after he starred in the Dolphins’ loss to the Raiders.
“His form in the backrow has been a revelation, not just today but throughout the opening eight rounds,” Alexander said. “Lemuelu has found himself in the backrow and impressed Wayne Bennett so much.”
EUAN AITKEN
Aitken began his NRL career with the Dragons, making his debut in Round 3 of the 2015 season. The 27-year-old emerged as one of the NRL’s most exciting centres at the Red V and at one point there were even calls for the outside back to earn a State of Origin debut. Aitken eventually left the Dragons for the Warriors before he was granted an early release from his New Zealand contract to join the Dolphins. The gun centre failed to live up to expectation for the Warriors, but has been simply excellent under Wayne Bennett. With the NRL’s newest franchise, Aitken has only missed time on the field due to injury with a hamstring blow ruling him out at halftime against the Sharks. He is also averaging more tackle busts, line breaks, line break assists, try assists, offloads and less missed tackles for the Dolphins than in his previous 151 starting appearances in the NRL. Referencing his potential Origin call-up, Ginnane explained Aitken may have lived up to his potential at the Redcliffe-based club. “But none more so than Euan Aitken, he has once again become the player that many thought he was in his early days at the Dragons when he was knocking on the door of Origin selection,” Ginnane said.
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HAMISO TABUAI-FIDOW
Tabuai-Fidow has simply been electric for the Dolphins and currently sits equal third on the try-scoring leaderboard with 10 four-pointers. The 21-year-old burst onto the scene with the Cowboys, debut in Round 5 of the 2020 season. He then went on to make his Origin debut just over a year later, playing for Queensland in Game III of the 2021 series. Last season, the speedster fell out of favour under Todd Payten as Scott Drinkwater cemented himself as the club’s starting fullback, Tabuai-Fidow was demoted to a utility role off the bench and Wayne Bennett swooped, initially handing him a two-year deal. Alex McKinnon, in his column fo foxsports.com.au, likened Tabuai-Fidow’s form and style this season to that of legendary fullback Billy Slater. “I’m not comparing the two but he does the same thing Billy Slater used to do for Melbourne, with that real ability to play ad lib footy,” he wrote. “You can bet your bottom dollar that if he hits the open market on November 1 the big-money offers will come thick and fast.” But the Dolphins put an end to that speculation, extending his contract until the end of 2027.
JAMAYNE ISAAKO
Isaako was a regular figure in the Broncos before signing with the Dolphins in December 2021. The gun winger revealed 12 months later he “didn’t have too much confidence” in his place in the team, prompting an immediate switch to the Titans for the 2022 season. Isaako only managed 11 games during his time on the Gold Coast but has flourished under Wayne Bennett at the Dolphins. The winger is yet to miss a minute, starting on the wing in every game and scoring eight tries including a hattrick against the Cowboys in Round 6. After grounding his third four-pointer within the first half, commentators Andrew Voss was excited to see Isaako enjoying his football once again. “First hattrick of his career Jamayne Isaako… and he’s got a smile on his face, enjoying his football,” Andrew Voss said. “He’s been a pretty fair pick-up.” Isaako’s statistics are quite staggering, scoring 108 points in only 10 games in comparison to 572 across his prior 87 career starting appearances. He has also made 10 linebreaks, compared to 43 for the Titans and Broncos. Isaako is also averaging close to double the tackle breaks, double the line breaks and 36 more running metres per game.
JEREMY MARSHALL-KING
Jeremy Marshall-King began his career with the Tigers, playing a singular game in 2017 before signing with the Bulldogs. The 27-year-old went on to play 99 games for the Belmore-based club, before they signed former Eel Reed Mahoney ahead of the 2023 season, signalling the end of his Bulldogs career. After Mahoney’s signing was announced in January 2022, Marshall-King seemed to hit his stride and Wayne Bennett quickly snapped the half-brother of Benji Marshall up. At the Dolphins, the gun hooker has been one of the club’s best and most consistent players, earning plaudits from rugby league pundits. After yet another darting run to orchestrate the Dolphins’ first try against the Sharks, rugby league legend Corey Parker labelled his form “electric”. “Seven try assists for Marshall-King, 11 tries they have been able to score through that middle third, the best in the competition,” Parker said. “It is quite a feat for a man who was replaced by Reed Mahoney at the Bulldogs, Wayne saw something in him and gave him an opportunity. “He has been electric out of dummy-half.” Marshall-King is another player smashing his previous output in starting appearances at other clubs, tallying more tackle busts, line breaks, line break assists, try assists (by 0.73) and tackles.
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KODI NIKORIMA
Nikorima had struggled to find regular NRL football in recent years, bouncing from the Warriors to the Rabbitohs in a mid-season switch. The 29-year-old played majority of his 15 games off the bench for South Sydney, adding to his tally of 167 first grade appearances. Nikorima signed a two-year deal with the Dolphins in July 2022, having previously lived in Brisbane after moving to Queensland from New Zealand at 12. Initially, Nikorima was firming to be the club’s utility, playing a role off the bench. The versatile playmaker didn’t feature until Round 3, scoring on his club debut. He then found himself thrust into the five-eighth role following an injury crisis in the halves with both Sean O’Sullivan and Anthony Milford sidelined. While questions were raised over his ability to lead a team, Nikorima delivered a big performance in the club’s Round 6 win over the Cowboys, going on to beat the Titans and Sharks in the No.6 jersey. His performance against Cronulla truly caught the eye of legendary halfback Cooper Cronk. “A couple of injuries to other spine members for the Dolphins, but he has been sensational,” Cronk said. “The best 40 minutes in a Dolphins jersey because he has bounced around to different clubs. For the Dolphins, Nikorima is managing more try assists and linebreak assists in only seven games, compared to the 94 previous games he has started in first grade.
TOM GILBERT
While Gilbert’s quality was clear to rugby league fans after making his Origin debut in 2022, the gun lock has taken his game to a new level under Bennett. The 22-year-old signed with the Dolphins in April 2022 and in a shock move, it was actually Gilbert who reached out to the NRL coach. The former Cowboys was keen on a return to his native Brisbane and said: “I wanted to come home and I saw this opportunity” to foxsports.com.au. Gilbert had only played 47 games before he shifted to the Dolphins, cementing himself into the Cowboys starting 17 in 2022. But in 2023, Gilbert has become a new beast and teammate Mark Nicholls couldn’t believe how competitive he really is. “I reckon he would fight over a 10-cent piece, and he’d do it for his mates. He’s one of those blokes who is the ultimate competitor,” Dolphins prop Mark Nicholls said to AAP. “I’ve loved playing with him. I’ve loved training with him. He is quite inspirational really.” Under Bennett Gilbert touches the ball five more times a game than in his previous 29 starting appearances. He has also increased his running metres, tackle busts, line breaks and tackles. His performances will have caught Maroons coach Billy Slater’s eye once again and the gun lock could add to his singular Queensland game this season.
