Penrith veteran Scott Sorensen must have feared the worst when he injured his hamstring in the final round of the NRL regular season.

The Panthers coach has his wife to thank for a key player in Penrith's premiership push being at the club. Read more here.

The Panthers have received a massive boost on the eve of the grand final with hardworking forward Scott Sorensen cleared to play in the decider.

Which makes Penrith prop Matt Eisenhuth both one of the best break-glass-in-case-of-emergency players in the league, and one of the unluckiest ones. Since joining the club in 2021 after a four-year stint at the Wests Tigers, Eisenhuth has played 64 games for the Panthers. But not one of them has been in a grand final.

The last five years for the Penrith Panthers have been nothing short of extraordinary. They made the Grand Final in 2020 after missing the top eight entirely the year prior, only to go on an incredible and historic three straight Premierships in 2021, 2022 and 2023.

The NRL grand final for 2024 is finally here, with Melbourne and Penrith set to battle it out for the game's biggest prize. It's a rematch of the 2020 Grand Final, which Melbourne won, but Penrith have won a three peat since then and also ended Melbourne's season twice.

It may have been five years ago and likely fuelled by alcohol, but Penrith players haven't forgotten Jahrome Hughes' below the belt sledge after Melbourne won the 2020 NRL grand final.