Braydon Trindall will play his 100th NRL game for Cronulla against the Dolphins at Ocean Protect Stadium on Saturday. It is a moment that captures far more than the numerical milestone itself. This is a player who has waited, worked, and weathered the kind of adversity that breaks most careers before finally establishing himself as the playmaker the Sharks always believed he could be.
Trindall made his debut for the club in Round 12, 2020, but the path from that first game to today has been anything but straight. Born and raised in Wee Waa, New South Wales, and of Indigenous Australian descent, Trindall moved to Queensland at age 12. He played junior rugby league for the Caboolture Snakes before being signed by the Melbourne Storm. The early promise, however, did not translate into immediate first-grade opportunities at Cronulla.
The patience required has been significant. Trindall spent years waiting for chances behind Matt Moylan, Chad Townsend, Nicho Hynes and Shaun Johnson. Even when opportunities arrived, they were not always seized cleanly. In April 2024, a positive roadside drug test threatened to derail his career entirely. When he returned a positive test, his chance to cement himself as a full-time starting half was ripped from his grasp, and the Sharks' back-up playmaker Daniel Atkinson impressed during Trindall's six weeks out.
What happened next, though, defined his character. Trindall sought advice from mental health specialists during his absence and credits former Sharks playmaker Jeff Robson for helping him turn things around on return. Robson, who works in the Sharks' welfare and education club, became a mentor to Trindall.
The result has been nothing short of remarkable. Trindall recently produced arguably his finest-ever performance, heading into his 100th game as a five-eighth. In that performance against the Titans, he delivered four try assists and two tries. He has finished the regular season averaging more run and kick metres, tries and try assists than in any prior year of his career. These are not hollow statistics. Trindall has established himself as one of the NRL's most creative playmakers since his debut in 2020, blessed with a booming boot and a first-grade fixture.
For Sharks captain Cam McInnes, who has been around the block, the bounce-back has been extraordinary. McInnes noted that while talent was never Trindall's greatest challenge, he has taken huge strides off the field, and from what he has been through, few players would come back stronger.
On Saturday at Ocean Protect Stadium, Trindall will mark 100 games in the cardinal and white. The number honours the years of waiting and the months of harder work than most will ever see. It marks a player who chose to fight through his own worst moments rather than accept defeat. That is a milestone worth celebrating.