The Dolphins are preparing to enter uncharted territory, with the club set to play NRL finals football for the first time.
With a maiden finals berth secured, attention now turns to September and the path that could take the Dolphins all the way to the NRL Grand Final.
Eight teams enter the Finals Series, played across four weeks, but where a team finishes inside the top eight determines the path they must take.
For the Dolphins, a top-four finish comes with a major advantage; the double chance.
The Finals Format
Week 1
Qualifying finals: 1st v 4th; 2nd v 3rd
Elimination finals: 5th v 8th; 6th v 7th
The top four contest the qualifying finals, with the winners earning a week off and progressing directly to the preliminary finals.
The losing teams receive a second chance and move into Week 2.
For teams finishing fifth to eighth, there is no second chance. The elimination finals are sudden-death, with the winners progressing and the losers’ seasons coming to an end.
For the Dolphins, finishing inside the top four means their maiden finals appearance will come in a qualifying final and victory would put them straight through to the final four.
Week 2
Preliminary finals: Winner of first qualifying final v winner of second semi-final; winner of second qualifying final v winner of first semi-final
Four teams remain and the equation is simple - win and you’re into the Grand Final.
The qualifying-final winners return from their week off to face the two semi-final winners, with both preliminary finals played as sudden-death contests.
For the Dolphins, reaching this stage would leave them just 80 minutes away from the club’s first NRL Grand Final appearance.
Week 4
Grand Final: Winner of first preliminary final v winner of second preliminary final
After three weeks of finals football, only two teams remain.
The winners of the preliminary finals meet in the NRL Grand Final, with the premiership on the line.
For the Dolphins, the road through September begins with their first taste of NRL finals football and from there, every victory takes the club another step towards the biggest game of the year.
The finals series, as follows:
