# 2025 Melbourne Storm season

The 2025 Melbourne Storm season is the 28th in the club's history, competing in the 2025 NRL season. The team is coached by Craig Bellamy, coaching the club for a 23rd consecutive season. Harry Grant continues as club captain for a second season.

## Season summary

* Preseason – Joining the club on train and trial contracts ahead of the season were players from the Storm academy (Coby Williamson, Mitch Jennings); Sunshine Coast Falcons (Josh Billing, Cooper-Page Wilson); Brisbane Tigers (Vaka Sikahele, Setu Tu); and North Sydney Bears (Nathaniel Roache, Morgan Harper, Ben Talty)
* 16 January – The club confirms that winger Dean Ieremia had suffered an achilles tendon rupture which will keep him sidelined for at least six months.
* 9 February – Harry Grant was reappointed captain, with Jahrome Hughes and Cameron Munster appointed as vice-captains. The club named a seven-man leadership group, with a number of other players named to an emerging leader group.
* 11 February – It was reported that former captain Christian Welch could be contemplating medical retirement after suffering a concussion during the club's preseason training camp. Welch had been given time away from the club to recover and was absent from a number of team activities.
* 12 February – Christian Welch announced his retirement from rugby league effective immediately. Welch retired on medical grounds due to a debilitating back injury.
* 15 February – Trailing 36–0 at half time of their first 2025 NRL Pre-season Challenge match against the New Zealand Warriors, an inexperienced Melbourne squad scored the only points of the second half in a 36–10 defeat.
* 23 February – Melbourne go without a win during the pre-season for the first time since 2019, losing their second match of the year 36–24 to the North Queensland Cowboys at Casey Fields. Sua Fa'alogo scored a try just before half time, but was forced from the field in the second half due to a hamstring injury. New signing Stefano Utoikamanu scored a try in his second match for the club ahead of the new season. In the second half, club academy prospect Hugo Peel suffered a broken jaw and severe concussion after a collision with fellow rookie Coby Williamson.
* Round 1 – Melbourne score 46 points in the first half against the Parramatta Eels to set a new club record for first half points, on the way to a 56–18 victory. Ryan Papenhuyzen and Xavier Coates each scored two tries to extend the club's round 1 winning streak to 23 matches.
* 13 March – Forward Josh King extends his contract with the club until the end of the 2027 season.

### Milestone games

| Round | Player | Milestone |
| Round 1 | Stefano Utoikamanu | Storm debut |
| Round 1 | Will Warbrick | 50th match |

## Fixtures
### Pre-season Challenge

Source:
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Mel. | Opp. | Tries | Goals | Field goals | Ref |
| 15 February | Trial | New Zealand Warriors | FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton | Lost | 10 | 36 | K Bradley, B Talty | E Morris 1/1, K Russell-Smith 0/1 | | |
| 23 February | Trial | North Queensland Cowboys | Casey Fields, Melbourne | Lost | 24 | 36 | N Meaney, S Fa'alogo, K Russell-Smith, S Utoikamanu, S Blore | N Meaney 1/2, T Wishart 1/2, K Russell-Smith 0/1 | | |

### Regular season
#### Result by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| Ground | H | – | H | A | A | H | A | H | N | H | A | – | A | H | – | A | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A |
| Result | W | B | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Position | 1 | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Points | 2 | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

#### Matches

Source:
* (g.p.) – Golden Point extra time
* (pen) – Penalty try
| Date | Rd | Opponent | H/A | Venue | Result | Mel. | Opp. | Tries | Goals | Field goals | Ref |
| 9 March | 1 | Parramatta Eels | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Won | 56 | 18 | X Coates (2), R Papenhuyzen (2), J King, E Katoa, H Grant, N Meaney, W Warbrick, J Hughes | N Meaney 8/10 | | |
| 16 March | 2 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 20 March | 3 | Penrith Panthers | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 25 March | 4 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Away | Netstrata Jubille Stadium, Sydney | | | | | | | |
| 6 April | 5 | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | Away | 4 Pines Park, Sydney | | | | | | | |
| 13 April | 6 | New Zealand Warriors | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 18 April | 7 | Dolphins | Away | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane | | | | | | | |
| 25 April | 8 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 4 May | 9 | Canberra Raiders | Home | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane | | | | | | | |
| 11 May | 10 | Wests Tigers | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 17 May | 11 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Away | Sharks Stadium, Sydney | | | | | | | |
| 24 May | 12 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 31 May | 13 | Gold Coast Titans | Away | Cbus Super Stadium, Gold Coast | | | | | | | |
| 6 June | 14 | North Queensland Cowboys | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 14 June | 15 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 21 June | 16 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Away | Accor Stadium, Sydney | | | | | | | |
| 29 June | 17 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 5 July | 18 | North Queensland Cowboys | Away | Queensland Country Bank Stadium, Townsville | | | | | | | |
| 12 July | 19 | Newcastle Knights | Away | McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle | | | | | | | |
| 19 July | 20 | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 24 July | 21 | Sydney Roosters | Away | Allianz Stadium, Sydney | | | | | | | |
| 31 July | 22 | Parramatta Eels | Away | CommBank Stadium, Sydney | | | | | | | |
| 7 August | 23 | Brisbane Broncos | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 14 August | 24 | Penrith Panthers | Away | CommBank Stadium, Sydney | | | | | | | |
| 22 August | 25 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 29 August | 26 | Sydney Roosters | Home | AAMI Park, Melbourne | | | | | | | |
| 4 September | 27 | Brisbane Broncos | Away | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane | | | | | | | |
* ↑ Multicultural Round
* ↑ ANZAC Round
* ↑ Magic Round
* ↑ Women in League Round
* ↑ Indigenous Round
* ↑ Indigenous Round

## Ladder

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Melbourne Storm | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 56 | 18 | +38 | 4 | Advance to finals series |
| 2 | Canberra Raiders | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 62 | 30 | +32 | 4 | Advance to finals series |
| 3 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 68 | 44 | +24 | 4 | Advance to finals series |
| 4 | Newcastle Knights | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 20 | +16 | 4 | Advance to finals series |
| 5 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 38 | +3 | 4 | Advance to finals series |
| 6 | Brisbane Broncos | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 72 | 46 | +26 | 2 | Advance to finals series |
| 7 | Wests Tigers | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 40 | 16 | +24 | 2 | Advance to finals series |
| 8 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 58 | 40 | +18 | 2 | Advance to finals series |
| 9 | Manly Warringah Sea Eagles | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 58 | 48 | +10 | 2 | |
| 10 | Penrith Panthers | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60 | 60 | 0 | 2 | |
| 11 | New Zealand Warriors | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 46 | −2 | 2 | |
| 12 | Gold Coast Titans | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 40 | −16 | 2 | |
| 13 | Sydney Roosters | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 52 | 82 | −30 | 2 | |
| 14 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 44 | 53 | −9 | 0 | |
| 15 | Dolphins | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 42 | −16 | 0 | |
| 16 | North Queensland Cowboys | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 78 | −54 | 0 | |
| 17 | Parramatta Eels | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 88 | −64 | 0 | |

## Coaching staff

* Craig Bellamy – Head Coach
* Marc Brentnall – Assistant Coach
* Aaron Bellamy – Assistant Coach
* Ryan Hinchcliffe – Assistant Coach
* Todd Lowrie – Development Coach

## 2025 squad

List current as of 17 January 2025
| Cap | Player name | Position | First Storm game | Previous First Grade RL club |
| 160 | Cameron Munster | FE, FB | 2014 | Melbourne Storm |
| 166 | Nelson Asofa-Solomona | SR, PR | 2015 | Melbourne Storm |
| 181 | Tui Kamikamica | SR, PR | 2017 | Melbourne Storm |
| 184 | Jahrome Hughes | FE, FB | 2017 | North Queensland Cowboys |
| 188 | Harry Grant | HK | 2018 | Melbourne Storm |
| 193 | Marion Seve | WG | 2019 | Melbourne Storm |
| 194 | Ryan Papenhuyzen | FB | 2019 | Melbourne Storm |
| 212 | Trent Loiero | SR | 2021 | Melbourne Storm |
| 213 | Dean Ieremia | WG | 2021 | Melbourne Storm |
| 217 | Xavier Coates | WG | 2022 | Brisbane Broncos |
| 218 | Nick Meaney | FB | 2022 | Canterbury Bulldogs |
| 219 | Josh King | PR | 2022 | Newcastle Knights |
| 220 | Tyran Wishart | FE, HK | 2022 | Melbourne Storm |
| 221 | Alec MacDonald | LK | 2022 | Melbourne Storm |
| 222 | Grant Anderson | CE | 2022 | Melbourne Storm |
| 225 | William Warbrick | CE, WG | 2023 | Melbourne Storm |
| 226 | Eliesa Katoa | SR | 2023 | New Zealand Warriors |
| 227 | Bronson Garlick | LK, SR | 2023 | Melbourne Storm |
| 228 | Kane Bradley | WG, CE | 2023 | North Queensland Cowboys |
| 229 | Jonah Pezet | HB | 2023 | Melbourne Storm |
| 231 | Sualauvi Fa'alogo | FB, WG | 2023 | Melbourne Storm |
| 232 | Jack Howarth | SR | 2023 | Melbourne Storm |
| 233 | Joe Chan | SR | 2023 | Catalans Dragons |
| 234 | Shawn Blore | SR | 2024 | Wests Tigers |
| 235 | Lazarus Vaalepu | PR | 2024 | Melbourne Storm |
| 236 | Keagan Russell-Smith | FE, HB | 2024 | Melbourne Storm |
| 237 | Ativalu Lisati | PR | 2024 | Melbourne Storm |
| 239 | Stefano Utoikamanu | PR | 2025 | Wests Tigers |
| – | Angus Hinchey | SR | Yet to debut | Melbourne Storm |
| – | Stanley Huen | FE | Yet to debut | Melbourne Storm |
| – | Moses Leo | WG | Yet to debut | Melbourne Storm |
| – | Gabriel Satrick | HK | Yet to debut | Melbourne Storm |
| – | Coby Williamson | CE | Yet to debut | Melbourne Storm |

## Player movements

Source:

## Representative honours

This table lists all players who have played a representative match in 2025.
* (C) = Captain
* (vc) = Vice-captain
| Player | NRL All Star match | State of Origin 1 | State of Origin 2 | State of Origin 3 | Internationals/Pacific Championships |
| Will Warbrick | Māori | — | — | — | — |
Additionally club coach Craig Bellamy and football manager Frank Ponissi were both part of the NSW State of Origin set up, with Bellamy appointed as an adviser to NSW coach Laurie Daley and Ponissi continuing in his role as team performance manager which he commenced in 2024.

## Statistics

This table contains playing statistics for all Melbourne Storm players to have played in the 2025 NRL season.
* Players are added as they play their first game in the season.
* Table updated as at round 1
* Statistics sources:
| Name | Appearances | Tries | Goals | Field goals | Points |
| Shawn Blore | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Xavier Coates | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Harry Grant | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Jack Howarth | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jahrome Hughes | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Tui Kamikamica | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Eliesa Katoa | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Josh King | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Trent Loiero | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alec MacDonald | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nick Meaney | 1 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 20 |
| Cameron Munster | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ryan Papenhuyzen | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Stefano Utoikamanu | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lazarus Vaalepu | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| William Warbrick | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Tyran Wishart | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 players used | — | 10 | 8 | 0/0 | 56 |

### Scorers

Most points in a game: 20
* Round 1 – Nick Meaney (1 try, 8 goals) vs Parramatta Eels
Most tries in a game: 2
* Round 1 – Xavier Coates vs Parramatta Eels
* Round 1 – Ryan Papenhuyzen vs Parramatta Eels

### Winning games

Highest score in a winning game: 56 points
* Round 1 vs Parramatta Eels
Lowest score in a winning game: 56 points
* Round 1 vs Parramatta Eels
Greatest winning margin: 38 points
* Round 1 vs Parramatta Eels
Greatest number of games won consecutively: 1

## Jerseys

In November 2023, Melbourne Storm announced a new sponsorship and apparel partnership agreement with Irish sportswear company O'Neills. In March 2025, major sponsor RedZed extended their partnership with the club until the end of the 2028 season, with their logo to remain on the club's jersey.

### Home

As part of the NRL's two year jersey cycle, the 2025 home jersey is the same as the 2024 version originally revealed in November 2023. The jersey is navy blue with a purple yoke and sleeves. There are bright yellow lightning bolt designs on the side panels, and a revised Big V logo at the top of the rear of the jersey as a continuation of the Our Home, Victoria acknowledgment which began during the 2020 season to honour Storm's home state. This jersey will be worn with navy blue shorts and socks.

### Away

As with the home jersey, the away jersey is the same as what was worn during the 2024 season. It is worn when the home jersey creates a clash with the opposition, and is a similar design to the home jersey, with white replacing the navy blue base colour. This jersey is worn with purple shorts, with white socks.

## Junior Representatives

The club entered teams in the 2025 New South Wales Rugby League junior representative competitions with the following coaching staff:
* Jersey Flegg Cup (Under-21s): Mark Russell (coach), Nate Myles (assistant)
* S.G. Ball Cup (Under-19s): Matt Duffie (coach), Justin O'Neill (assistant)
* Harold Matthews Cup (Under-17s): Tony Adam (coach)
The club's academy program had Tim Auremi as Pathways Operations Manager and Dean Benton as Pathways Performance Manager.