![\"Jamayne](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/0a87b00be313d9eb2814551b2b87df4540fccadf.jpeg\")
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If not for a phone call from Wayne Bennett, Jamayne Isaako\u2019s career may have ended years ago.<\/p>\n
Cut from the Brisbane Broncos, then left languishing in reserve grade at the Gold Coast Titans, his NRL tenure was in limbo.<\/p>\n
A career as a carpenter beckoned.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I left the Broncos, I was heartbroken. I always thought I was going to be a one-club man,\u201d Isaako says.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was kind of pushed out, they had some young guns coming through, and I had to make way for them.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn opportunity came up to go to the Titans, and it probably wasn\u2019t the best move. I just remember finishing that season not completely sure of whether I still wanted to go ahead and play footy.<\/p>\n
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Jamayne Isaako admits to feeling heartbroken at the time of his Broncos\u2019 departure.Credit: NRL Photos<\/p>\n
\u201cI was at a crossroads.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bennett and the Dolphins changed that.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said come for the preseason, and if you still feel the same after, do whatever you want to do,\u201d Isaako says.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like that helped me a lot as a footy player and as a person, being able to have deep conversations with him that really helped me find myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Wayne rode the shit out of me\u2019<\/p>\n
Isaako burst onto the scene as one of the game\u2019s most promising wingers, swiftly earning his maiden Test cap for New Zealand.<\/p>\n
But as the Broncos fell into the doldrums, claiming the 2020 wooden spoon and finishing 14th in 2021, he was a casualty of the rebuild.<\/p>\n
As his confidence went, so did his form \u2013 a period he admits he \u201cdidn\u2019t handle well\u201d.<\/p>\n
But following that inaugural Dolphins\u2019 preseason, Isaako found his best.<\/p>\n
\u201cWayne rode the shit out of me. Whenever I used to make a mistake \u2013 a dropped ball or misread in defence \u2013 he was always on my case,\u201d Isaako says.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe literally pushed me to my limits \u2026 I\u2019ve never pushed myself as hard I did in that preseason.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat helped because in the back of my head I was constantly pushing myself, whereas I hadn\u2019t had that in previous years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Three years later, Isaako has 46 tries, a league-leading 713 points, and a New Zealand jumper he insists he will not be trading for Samoa (who he represented once).<\/p>\n
Sunday\u2019s game against the Titans will be his 71st consecutive game.<\/p>\n
The 29-year-old credits an extensive regimen away from training for his consistency, with a sauna and ice bath installed at his home.<\/p>\n
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As for his points scoring spree, and 81.82 per cent goal kicking accuracy, that credit goes to the smallest of allies.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got a six-year-old boy and he loves being outdoors, so whenever we get the chance, we go and have a kick. That\u2019s probably helped me become a bit more accurate,\u201d Isaako says.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe definitely keeps me on my toes, and if I didn\u2019t have him dragging me out to the park, I probably wouldn\u2019t be practicing as much outside of training.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dolphin for life<\/p>\n
Under coach Kristian Woolf, the Dolphins have assembled a squad they believe have a premiership within them.<\/p>\n
England lock Morgan Knowles and Queensland Maroons flyer Selwyn Cobbo will arrive next year, while Felise Kaufusi signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Isaako, off contract in 2026, will be free to negotiate with rivals from November 1, but stressed his desire was to remain in Dolphins\u2019 colours.<\/p>\n
![\"Jamayne](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/7747c8019c0e8cd24821b4d3da872bd82ca864f1.jpeg\")
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Jamayne Isaako is set to finish a third-straight regular season as the NRL\u2019s leading point scorer.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to stay here, I want to stay in Brisbane \u2013 whether that\u2019s the case or not, I\u2019m not too sure,\u201d Isaako says.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know what Woolfy is like, and he\u2019s committed to having blokes at the club who are willing to work hard.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll leave that up to my manager, [but] I\u2019d love to stay and try to finish my career here in Brisbane.\u201d<\/p>\n
Finals path and the return of Farnworth<\/p>\n
The equation is simple for the Dolphins to feature in their maiden finals campaign \u2013 win and hope the Roosters stumble.<\/p>\n
Even triumphs against the Titans and Raiders will require an eighth-placed Sydney losing one of their matches, while they desperately need to rediscover their mid-season spark.<\/p>\n
Isaako is at a loss for where the side\u2019s defensive resilience has gone, having conceded 160 points in the past three weeks, which coincided with Herbie Farnworth\u2019s hamstring injury.<\/p>\n