For Tom Gilbert, the Dolphins' first finals campaign is about more than simply making the top eight.
He has been there since the beginning.
Gilbert was one of the original Dolphins players when the club entered the NRL in 2023, experiencing the uncertainty that came with launching a new team, the criticism that followed and the gradual progress that has now taken them to third on the ladder.
Three years on, the Dolphins are preparing for their first finals appearance, and have done so without making dramatic changes to the plan that got them there.
“One thing I always remember about myself joining the Dolphins was how many people wrote us off, told us we wouldn't be successful for years,” Gilbert told Zero Tackle.
Those early predictions looked particularly stark during their inaugural season, when the Dolphins were widely tipped to finish with the wooden spoon.
Instead, Wayne Bennett's side started the year with three straight wins and finished 13th, before gradually improving across their first three seasons and establishing themselves as one of the competition's genuine contenders.
This year, that steady progression has culminated in a third-place finish and a first taste of finals football.
And while the Dolphins have no finals experience as a club, the personal growth of their players and the representative jerseys they have stepped into make them genuine contenders.
Gilbert believes that progression has not come from one major change, but from continuing to improve the foundations that were already in place.
“I don't think a lot has changed; we just stuck to the course. We just had to take a little bit of time every year to get better,” he told Zero Tackle.
“It took a lot of reflection, taking feedback, well, having a desire to get better each month of the year, and using your preseason and training.”
The approach is particularly interesting when viewed alongside teams such as the Bulldogs.
Canterbury also took the long route, spending several seasons rebuilding, with fans told to be patient because their time was coming.
But after reaching the position they had spent years working towards, the Bulldogs made changes in an attempt to take the next step too quickly, conducting a major spine restructure midway through their season.
Although they made finals, they were unable to win a game, farewelled multiple players and have now slipped outside the top eight this season.
The Dolphins, by contrast, continued to back the foundations they had spent three years building.
For Gilbert, that has meant putting responsibility on the players themselves to keep improving rather than relying on dramatic change from outside the group.
“But I think the biggest thing for us is the individuals that took ownership of their game. They got the best out of themselves, whether that was coming out of rehab, coming into form, there was just a real desire,” Gilbert said.
“Jack Bostock and Max Plath are two blokes that have come out of rehab, and as soon as they came back, it added something more to our team, which was remarkable. As I said, they had that desire and wanting to get better.”
It has also been about established players refusing to become comfortable with where they had already reached.
“Blokes like Herbie Farnworth and Isaiya Katoa, they both had great years last year, and I think it can be easy to feel that pressure to bounce back and have another great year or take your foot off the pedal,” he said.
“One thing they both did was just run that bit harder, just little things, but they found ways to get better and shine in their performances.”
That individual desire has, according to Gilbert, become part of the wider culture inside the Dolphins.
“I could name every player in our team that has these stories and journeys of getting better this year for whatever reason, and I think that impresses the whole group at the moment,” Gilbert smiled.
For a player who has experienced the Dolphins from their first day in the NRL, the chance to finally play finals football represents the latest, and perhaps most significant, step in a journey that has been built gradually.
The club did not expect success to arrive overnight.
It took three seasons of development, reflection and improvement to get to this point.
Now, having finished third and earned a finals berth, the Dolphins have an opportunity to see just how far that patience can take them.
