She is nominated for ‘captain of the year’ at the 2024 Dally M Awards on Wednesday night.
And Cronulla Sharks captain Tiana Penitani certainly turned heads at the NRL’s most prestigious night held at Sydney’s Randwick Racecourse.
The NRLW star showed off her ripped body in a $1,760 pink leather dress by American designer Rick Owens.
Penitani is one of the best defensive players in the league.
The 28-year-old has been a force on the wings and in the centers in New South Wales, Australia and the NRLW, proving he is almost impossible to stop in mid-flight.
She was also the youngest Australian to represent the country at a rugby or rugby sevens World Cup in 2013, aged just 17, before a serious knee injury ruined her chances of wearing green and gold at the Games. Rio 2016 Olympics.
A family tragedy when she was young helped her become the mentally strong player she is today.
‘I give a lot of credit to my mother and the way she raised us; the values and morals that she instilled in us from a very young age,” he told Daily Mail Australia last year.
Cronulla Sharks captain Tiana Penitani turned heads at the 2024 Dally M Awards at Sydney’s Randwick Racecourse on Wednesday.
‘He shaped me as an athlete because he taught me the importance of resilience. When you’re put in a position where you go through tragedy and experience trauma at such a young age, you’re forced to deal with it. There is no chance to run away from it.
“I think the way I let that leadership and trickle-down feed into my playing career and my sporting life was just to be tough, not be afraid of anything and take challenges head-on.
“And at the end of the day, I’ve been through some really dark times with my family and nothing, nothing will compare to that.
“I’ve learned a lot about myself over the years…something I’m really proud to say is that I’m a really resilient person, and I’m proud to say that I’ve carried those life lessons throughout my career.” “. .’
The NRLW star showed off her ripped body in a $1,760 pink leather dress by American designer Rick Owens.
Chosen as Cronulla’s inaugural NRLW captain ahead of stars such as Emma Tonegato, Quincy Dodd, Venessa Foliaki and Hollie Wheeler, it’s obvious how highly regarded she is as a leader.
Constantly at her side is her husband Aaron Gray, a former NRL star who played for the Rabbitohs and Sharks. The couple has been together for approximately 11 years.
For someone who is a self-confessed “hyperactive” woman, Penitani praises Gray for always bringing her back to earth.
Given that she is a dermal (skin) therapist and regularly appears on Fox League coverage, that’s no small feat.
“He’s (Gray) fantastic and he encouraged me a little bit to take a step back because he knows that when I get exhausted, it’s a proper mental exhaustion,” Penitani said.
“So he’s the little angel on my shoulder, like, ‘Hey, take a little break,’ and I love that.” He holds down the fort when I’m not around, so he can be the master of the house.
Being recruited to Cronulla was a homecoming of sorts for Penitani, although she played in Southern territory as a junior with La Perouse.
After transferring from Rugby Sevens in 2019, Penitani signed up for Cronulla Women’s Premiership team Harvey Norman, where Gray was playing at the time.
A tribal tattoo on Penitani’s thigh, a touching family tribute, can be seen during his impressive performance for NSW in the second game of this year’s State of Origin series.