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Brian To'o in sad development as Panthers star cops brutal reality of premiership triumph

The winger had big dreams to play his entire career with his 'brothers' at Penrith.

Brian To'o is officially the last of his 'brothers' at the Penrith Panthers, with Jarome Luai playing his final game for the club in Sunday night's grand final victory. To'o, Luai, Stephen Crichton and Spencer Leniu are all of Samoan heritage and are so close they consider themselves brothers.

The quartet all came up through the junior ranks at the Panthers together, and were lucky enough to win the premiership alongside each other in both 2021 and 2022. But premiership success always comes with salary cap pressure, and Leniu and Crichton were both forced to leave the Panthers for greener pastures.

Leniu has since joined the Roosters, while Crichton is the new captain at the Bulldogs. And as of 2025, Luai will be a Wests Tiger. Sunday night's grand final was the last game Luai will play for the Panthers, and it means To'o is now the last member of the quartet remaining at the club.

Brian To'o and Jarome Luai during the NRL grand final.
The NRL grand final was the last game together for Brian To'o and Jarome Luai. Image: Getty

The four players represented NSW in State of Origin this year, but it won't be the same as representing their junior club together. Speaking ahead of the grand final, To'o lifted the lid on his heartache at seeing his best mates all depart.

“We sat next to each other [in 2021], praying, hoping we could all stick together for a long time and keep doing what we were doing," he told the Sydney Morning Herald. “We all realised what a great life we were living, how we were living out our dreams, and how we could hopefully play on the same team forever.”

Brian To'o and Jarome Luai after winning a fourth premiership together.
Brian To'o and Jarome Luai celebrate after winning the NRL grand final. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

Their bond is so strong that To'o's wife Moesha revealed they named their two sons in honour of Luai, Crichton and Leniu. Both boys' middle names contain parts of 'Jarome', 'Stephen' and 'Spencer' in them.

“He has missed Spencer and Stephen this year, and I know he’ll miss ‘Romy’ [Luai], but he’ll be all right,” Moesha said. “Everyone underestimates how close the four boys are. A good example is Brian naming our son after the three boys. When they played Origin together this year, I know they all looked forward to it. Hopefully they can do it again next year.”

Spencer Leniu, Stephen Crichton, Brian To'o and Jarome Luai.
Spencer Leniu, Stephen Crichton, Brian To'o and Jarome Luai after a State of Origin game for NSW. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

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Speculation that To'o wanted out of the Panthers earlier this year originated from conversations he had with the three other players in Origin camp. Crichton, Luai and Leniu have all taken big-money deals at their new clubs, but To'o has remained loyal on a relatively low salary at the Panthers considering his standing as a top-tier winger.

Crichton showed the bond he still shares with To'o when he attended the Panthers' preliminary final clash with Cronulla two weeks ago, and presented him with a traditional Samoan gift after the game. And Crichton previously revealed that To'o was the first person he told when he decided to join the rival Bulldogs.

Jarome Luai, Brian To'o and Stephen Crichton, pictured here after the 2022 grand final.
Jarome Luai, Brian To'o and Stephen Crichton after the 2022 grand final. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

"He and his partner were pretty emotional. I grew up with them and he's been my best mate ever since footy started," the centre said earlier this year. "It was pretty sad telling him. I told him first out of all the boys. We’re heaps tight. Just the bond that we’ve had and success that we’ve had brought us together.

"Just not on the field, but off the field it’s just always fun, always mucking around. Our families are pretty close, too. We go to the same church as well, so we've kind of been together ever since we were young. We’re not brothers by blood, but we are brothers by choice. If I don’t see him for three months, we can catch up one day and it’s like we’ve never been apart.”