Liam Martin only had one thing on his mind as he raced towards Xavier Coates, with the ball in the air and the grand final on the edge of a knife.

Martin is good in the air – he played Aussie Rules as a kid, so he's got some hops – but Coates has 12 centimetres on the Panthers backrower and might have the best vertical leap in the competition.

Few would have expected Martin to claim an aerial battle with the Storm winger, but he's one of the best backrowers in the league because he makes that effort regardless, so he raced down after Nathan Cleary's kick all the same.

"I just hoped I didn't stuff it up," Martin said.

"I got in the frame to compete for it and thought 'bugger it, I'll back myself', and I got a bit lucky."

By 'a bit lucky', Martin means he outjumped Coates and popped a pass to Moses Leota, who then found Paul Alamoti who scored the try that sealed the grand final.

There were still 20 minutes left, but the play all but locked up Penrith's fourth-straight premiership and secured the Clive Churchill Medal for Martin after a superb all-round display.

"All 17 of us could have won it tonight, everyone did their job, but to be the first forward in a while to win it, that's so special. It probably won't sink in for a while," Martin said.

"I'm so honoured – it's heavier than you think, but I like it."

Martin seemed to be everywhere on Sunday night – haring after kicks to pin back the Storm back three in their own end, forcing errors with his all-action style of defence, and connecting with Cleary down the right edge wherever possible.

There were plenty of big plays as well, like his try right on half-time or getting in the air up there with Coates, which was a surprise to everyone except for his Panthers teammates.

"He's always had that. He's so annoying, he annoys all the boys, but he can do anything," said winger Brian To'o.

"He's played such a big part in the team, he's earned this."

Most premiership sides go from being the hunter to the hunted, but Penrith put a different spin on it with their theme for this season – Always The Hunter.

Few players live that mentality like Martin, who has become a Test and Origin regular – as well as a quadruple premiership winner – on the back of his seemingly endless tenacity.

For him, the idea of always hunting for more goes right back to before the dynasty, when Penrith lost to Melbourne in the 2020 grand final.

"It probably started in 2020, when we watched that grand final back and they taught us a lesson or two in how to win finals," Martin said

"That's the standard we had to play at and we've been trying to do that year in and year out."

Martin still has a bit to do in 2024, despite playing with a shoulder that, in his words "is pretty buggered".

First on the list is getting rid of the "bush afro" he's been sporting in recent months. It's unlikely to survive Penrith's Mad Monday celebrations.

Then it's into the Australian squad, where he's become an automatic selection, for the Pacific Championships.

Eventually, the hunt will resume again as Penrith begin their quest for a fifth straight premiership. It's a level of success that seems impossible but that's never stopped them before.

Even now, after doing this four times, Martin still can't really explain what it all means to him. Like his jump over Coates, this run is something that could not have happened unless he willed it into reality.

"I can't put it into words," Martin said.

"We kept asking each other out there, 'Is this real, is this really happening,' it's too special for me to really describe."