The Melbourne Storm are through to another preliminary final under Craig Bellamy. That makes it 18 prelims in 23 seasons – which is wild. Sure, we don’t count a few of those because the Storm were cheating bastards, but still… it’s bloody impressive.
What’s more impressive is that the Storm have looked below their best all year, aside from a few blowout wins at home against pretty ordinary opposition. Credit where credit’s due, though – they’ve knocked off a desperate Bulldogs side who came ready for a fight, and they did it without Jahrome Hughes and Ryan Papenhuyzen. They’re going to be bloody tough to beat at AAMI Park in two weeks.
And then there’s the big post-game news from Craig Bellamy himself: Jahrome Hughes is a chance to return from a fractured arm and line up for Melbourne in the prelim. That’s massive.
They’re going to need both Hughes and Papenhuyzen if they have any hope of winning this competition. Because let’s be honest – this version of the Storm doesn’t look good enough to beat sides like the Raiders, Broncos, or Panthers, who are my top three teams heading into the business end of the finals.
The Storm’s attack was clunky for most of the game – and that goes for both sides, really. It was a tight contest, no doubt, but it never reached the standard you’d expect from a high-quality finals match.
In truth, Melbourne were lucky they ran into a Bulldogs side carrying a few injuries and clearly out of form. Against almost any other top-eight side last night, I reckon they lose. Let’s not forget – up until the 78th minute, the only thing separating the two teams was one of the softest penalties ever awarded in a finals game.
Sure, the Bulldogs got one back with that absolute bullshit call on Harry Grant for the so-called “dangerous” legs tackle – but let’s not get into that…
The Storm need to find another gear over the next two weeks to win this competition, but they are now in the perfect position to do so. With a week off and a home prelim final to come, all sides would be dreading that possible road trip. I’m excited to see how these next few weeks play out.
KATOA! 💥
— Fox League (@FOXNRL) September 12, 2025
The Storm take the first points of the Qualifying final!
📺 Watch #NRLStormBulldogs on Ch.502 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/nxom5o0IwG
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🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/0Ad3YamfJv pic.twitter.com/ghrZC0Eup3
Shout out to Jonah Pezet, who was outstanding last night in a big game, for a young kid who hasn’t had regular first grade, that was only his second game as a starting half this season. To slot in at halfback and kick as well as he did and guide them around the park was awesome to see. He finished the game with a try assist, two line break assists, and a 40/20. Sure, he had a dud kick or two, but he was great last night, and I reckon about 7 clubs in the NRL have flicked his manager a text this morning to catch up for coffee this week. He’s going to be some player in a few years.
