She is up for ‘Captain of the Year’ at the 2024 Dally M Awards on Wednesday evening.

And Cronulla Sharks skipper Tiana Penitani certainly turned heads at the NRL’s most prestigious night held at Sydney’s Randwick Racecourse.

The NRLW star, 28, showed off her ripped body in a $1,760 pink leather dress by American designer Rick Owens.

She teamed the body-hugging frock with a pair strappy silver stilettos, several diamond rings and a pair of silver hoop earrings.

Penitani wore her long hair out and tucked behind her ears and accentuated her natural beauty with a neutral makeup palette. 

The talented sports star is one of the best backline players in the league.

She has been a powerhouse on the wing and in the centres for NSW, Australia and in the NRLW, proving to be almost impossible to stop in full flight.

She was also the youngest Aussie to represent the country at either a rugby union or rugby sevens World Cup in 2013 aged just 17, before a serious knee injury cruelled her chances of wearing green and gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

A family tragedy when she was young helped shape her into the mentally tough player she is today. 

‘I give a lot of credit to who I am to my mum and the way she raised us; the values and morals that she kind of instilled in us from a really young age,’ she told Daily Mail Australia last year. 

‘It shaped me as an athlete because it taught me the importance of resilience. When you’re put in a position where you go through tragedy and you experience trauma at such a young age, you’re kind of forced to face it. There’s no opportunity to run away from it. 

‘I think the way I kind of have have let that lead and drip-feed into my playing career and my sporting life was just to be tough, not be afraid of anything and to take take challenges head on. 

‘And at the end of the day, I’ve been through some really dark times with my family and nothing, nothing will ever really compare to that. 

‘I’ve learnt a lot about myself over the years … something I’m really proud to say is that I’m a really resilient person, and I’m proud to say I’ve carried those life lessons through my career.’ 

Picked as Cronulla’s inaugural NRLW captain ahead of such stars as Emma Tonegato, Quincy Dodd, Venessa Foliaki and Hollie Wheeler, it’s obvious how highly regarded she is as a leader.

Constantly at her side is husband Aaron Gray, an ex-NRL star who played for the Rabbitohs and Sharks. The pair have been together for roughly 11 years.

For someone that is a self-confessed ‘hyperactive’ woman, Penitani lauds Gray for always bringing her back down to earth.

Given she is a Dermal (skin) Therapist as well as regularly featuring on Fox League’s coverage, that is no small feat. 

‘He’s (Gray) fantastic and he’s he’s kind of encouraged me a little bit to take a step back because he knows that when I burn out, it’s proper mental burnout,’ said Penitani. 

‘So he’s the little angel on my shoulder, like, ‘Hey, take a little bit of a break’, and I love that. He holds the fort when I’m away, so he can be the house husband.’

Being recruited to Cronulla was a coming home of sorts for Penitani, though she played in Souths territory as a junior with La Perouse.

After transferring from Rugby Sevens in 2019, Penitani signed up with Cronulla’s Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership side, where Gray was playing at the time.