Panthers fullback Dylan Edwards says he will brush off a mystery foot injury that has him confined to a moon boot after matches to take his place among a bruised and battered Penrith squad in Sunday’s grand final against South Sydney.

The energetic Edwards missed the first-week finals loss to the Rabbitohs but has been a welcome addition as Penrith regrouped to get past Parramatta and Melbourne to earn themselves back-to-back grand final appearances.

He was on crutches during the club’s media day on Monday on the Sunshine Coast but said that had been the case for a number of weeks as he tries to nurse the injury through to the end of the week. He said the boot would be taken off in coming days and he would be able to prepare for the decider.

“It’s more of a load thing than anything. It doesn’t need surgery. The boot goes away towards the back end of the week, so I’m free to play and train. It looks worse than it is. I just put it on for you guys,” Edwards said.

James Fisher-Harris (knee) and Nathan Cleary (shoulder) are among the other walking wounded for Penrith, although both will play, while Tevita Pangai jnr (knee) and Moses Leota (calf) are both in some doubt to suit up against the Rabbitohs.

Edwards had a tough moment against the Eels when he misjudged a bomb from Mitchell Moses that led to a Parramatta try, but he was heavily involved over the past fortnight and shapes as a key man for Penrith as they try to go one better than 2020.

He’s a hard marker, giving himself just an “average″⁣ assesment of his form this season, but likes to contribute on multiple fronts and knows the only thing that matters is the 80 minutes in front of him, not all the games in the past.

“Average. Patchy. Up and down,” Edwards said of his 2021 efforts. “There’s always room for improvement but I’m happy where we are at the moment, that’s for sure.

“I get a lot of help from the players around me. But you can’t be one-dimensional.