2026 Melbourne Storm season

2026 Melbourne Storm season
Team information
CEOJustin Rodski
CoachCraig Bellamy
Captain
StadiumAAMI Park – 30,050
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The 2026 Melbourne Storm season will be the 29th in the club's history, competing in the 2026 NRL season. The team is coached by Craig Bellamy, coaching the club for a 24th consecutive season. Harry Grant continued as club captain for a third season.

The club will also field teams in the New South Wales Rugby League competitions, including women's teams for the first time.

Season summary

  • Preseason – Joining the NRL squad during the preseason were uncapped development players Suli Pole, Angus Hinchey, Preston Conn and Mitchell Jennings.[1]

Fixtures

Pre-season Challenge

Main article: 2026 NRL Pre-season Challenge

Source:[2]

Date Rd Opponent Venue Result Mel. Opp. Tries Goals Field goals Ref
13 February Trial Canberra Raiders Seiffert Oval, Queanbeyan
21 February Trial Gold Coast Titans Sunshine Coast Stadium, Sunshine Coast

Regular season

Result by round

Round123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627
GroundHAHAAHAHAHNAHH–HA–HAAHN–HAA
ResultBBB
Position
Points
Source: National Rugby League
A = Away; H = Home; N = Neutral; B = Bye; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

Source:[3]

Date Rd Opponent H/A Venue Result Mel. Opp. Tries Goals Field goals Ref
5 March 1 Parramatta Eels H AAMI Park, Melbourne
14 March 2 St George Illawarra Dragons A WIN Stadium, Wollongong
20 March 3[i] Brisbane Broncos H AAMI Park, Melbourne
28 March 4 North Queensland Cowboys A QCB Stadium, Townsville
3 April 5 Penrith Panthers A CommBank Stadium, Sydney
11 April 6 New Zealand Warriors H AAMI Park, Melbourne
17 April 7 Canberra Raiders A GIO Stadium, Canberra
25 April 8[ii] South Sydney Rabbitohs H AAMI Park, Melbourne
1 May 9 Dolphins A Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
10 May 10 Wests Tigers H AAMI Park, Melbourne
16 May 11[iii] Parramatta Eels N Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
22 May 12 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs A Accor Stadium, Sydney
30 May 13 Sydney Roosters H AAMI Park, Melbourne
5 June 14 Newcastle Knights H AAMI Park, Melbourne
13 June 15 Bye
21 June 16 Canberra Raiders H AAMI Park, Melbourne
27 June 17 Manly Warringah Sea Eagles A 4 Pines Park, Sydney
4 July 18 Bye
12 July 19 Gold Coast Titans H AAMI Park, Melbourne
17 July 20[iv] Sydney Roosters A Allianz Stadium, Sydney
24 July 21 South Sydney Rabbitohs A Accor Stadium, Sydney
31 July 22 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs H AAMI Park, Melbourne
8 August 23[v] Manly Warringah Sea Eagles N HBF Park, Perth
15 August 24[v] Bye
20 August 25 Penrith Panthers H AAMI Park, Melbourne
27 August 26 Brisbane Broncos A Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
5 September 27 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks A Sharks Stadium, Sydney
Fixture notes:
  1. ^ Multicultural Round
  2. ^ ANZAC Round
  3. ^ Magic Round
  4. ^ Women in League Round
  5. ^ a b Indigenous Round

Ladder

Main article: 2026 NRL season
Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1 Brisbane Broncos 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Advance to finals series
2 Canberra Raiders 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
5 Dolphins 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
6 Gold Coast Titans 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
7 Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
8 Melbourne Storm 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
9 Newcastle Knights 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
10 New Zealand Warriors 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
11 North Queensland Cowboys 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
12 Parramatta Eels 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
13 Penrith Panthers 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
14 South Sydney Rabbitohs 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
15 St. George Illawarra Dragons 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
16 Sydney Roosters 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
17 Wests Tigers 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Updated to match(es) played on 14 November 2025. Source: National Rugby League

Coaching staff

2026 squad

List current as of 19 December 2025

Further information: List of Melbourne Storm players
Cap Nat. Player name Position First Storm game Previous First Grade RL club[a]
160 Cameron Munster FE, FB 2014 Melbourne Storm
181 Tui Kamikamica SR, PR 2017 Melbourne Storm
184 Jahrome Hughes FE, HB 2017 North Queensland Cowboys
188 Harry Grant HK 2018 Melbourne Storm
193 Marion Seve WG 2019 Melbourne Storm
212 Trent Loiero SR 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
225 William Warbrick CE, WG 2023 Melbourne Storm
226 Eliesa Katoa SR 2023 New Zealand Warriors
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
240 Moses Leo CE, WG 2025 Melbourne Storm
241 Siulagi Tuimalatu-Brown CE, WG 2025 Melbourne Storm
– Jack Hetherington SR, PR Yet to debut Newcastle Knights
– Angus Hinchey SR Yet to debut Melbourne Storm
– Stanley Huen FE Yet to debut Melbourne Storm
– Davvy Moale PR, SR Yet to debut South Sydney Rabbitohs
– Josiah Pahulu PR Yet to debut Gold Coast Titans
– Gabriel Satrick HK Yet to debut Melbourne Storm
– Trent Toelau FE Yet to debut Penrith Panthers
– Manaia Waitere CE Yet to debut Canberra Raiders

Player movements

Source:[7]

Jerseys

Home
Away

In November 2023, Melbourne Storm announced a new sponsorship and apparel partnership agreement with Irish sportswear company O'Neills.[25] 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 for a seventh season.[26] Insurance company Budget Direct joined the club as a new sponsorship partner, with the logo added to the sleeves of all jerseys.[27]

Home

Unveiled in November 2025, the club's refreshed jersey sees purple return as the predominant colour of the home jersey design. The design featured a gold chevron beneath a navy blue yoke, while the shoulder panels and sleeves were both purple. A new addition were gold lightning bolts inside the sleeve cuffs.[28]

Away

Also released for sale in November 2025, the club's away jersey also was refreshed for 2026. Predominantly white and worn with white shorts, the jersey features a simple design with purple, navy blue and gold chevrons across the top of the chest. A subtle pattern through the design was said to be "inspired by the topography of Melbourne," while the sleeve cuffs also featured a lightning bolt motif similar to the home jersey.[29]

NSW Cup team

After ending their Queensland Cup affiliations during 2025, Melbourne reinstated a team in the New South Wales Rugby League's New South Wales Cup competition. It will be the first time since the 2010 season that the club had a reserve grade team operating out of Melbourne.[30]

2025 Jersey Flegg Cup premiership coach Mark Russell took the reigns as coach of the team.[30][31]

Junior Representatives

The club entered teams in the 2026 New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) male junior representative competitions with the following coaching staff:

Todd Lowrie was appointed the club's Head of Development in addition to his role with the NRL squad.[31]

In a first for the Melbourne Storm, the club entered teams into the NSWRL's female junior representative competitions, the Under-19s Tarsha Gale Cup and the Under-17s Lisa Fiaola Cup.[31]

Most home matches for each of the junior representative squads were scheduled to be played at Seabrook Reserve in Broadmeadows, the home of NRL Victoria.

Notes

  1. ^ Previous First Grade RL club: This column denotes the previous RL club the player was signed to and played first grade RL for. If they are yet to debut then this is stipulated. If they were merely signed to the club but did not play then it is not counted

References

  1. ^ Read, Brent; Carayannis, Michael (13 December 2025). "Every NRL club's train and trial players heading in to the 2026 pre-season". Code Sports. News Corporation Australia. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  2. ^ "NRL 2026 Melbourne Storm Pre-season Challenge Draw". Retrieved 17 November 2025.
  3. ^ "NRL 2026 Melbourne Storm Draw". Retrieved 17 November 2025.
  4. ^ "Storm announce 2019 Football department structure". 5 October 2018. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  5. ^ "Lowrie to return to Storm". melbournestorm.com.au. 2 November 2022. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  6. ^ Callinan, Josh (3 November 2022). "Former NRL player Todd Lowrie joins Melbourne Storm coaching staff for 2023". Australian Community Media. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  7. ^ "NRL Signings Tracker". NRL.com. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  8. ^ "Anderson to depart Storm at end of 2025". melbournestorm.com.au. 25 June 2025. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  9. ^ "Nelson Asofa-Solomona to depart Storm". melbournestorm.com.au. 9 October 2025. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  10. ^ "Melbourne Storm grants Nelson Asofa-Solomona immediate release from NRL contract". abc.net.au. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 9 October 2025. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  11. ^ Gates, Zachary (9 October 2025). "Storm split with Nelson Asofa-Solomona amid 'attitude' issues". Nine's Wide World of Sport. Nine Media. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  12. ^ "Rabbitohs sign Bronson Garlick for Seasons 2026 and 2027". rabbitohs.com.au. 23 May 2025. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  13. ^ Harper, Lachlan (23 May 2025). "South Sydney's aggressive rebuild continues as Bronson Garlick returns from Melbourne". Nine's Wide World of Sport. Nine Media. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  14. ^ a b Pryde, Scott (9 October 2025). "Melbourne Storm confirm five player departures". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  15. ^ "Storm release Papenhuyzen from final year of contract". NRL.com. 30 October 2025. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  16. ^ Doyle, Michael (30 October 2025). "Ryan Papenhuyzen granted immediate release from Melbourne Storm". abc.net.au. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 October 2025.
  17. ^ "Pezet to depart Melbourne Storm". melbournestorm.com.au. 29 October 2025. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  18. ^ Gabor, Martin (29 October 2025). "'One of the most exciting young talents in the game': Jonah Pezet's future finally sorted in multi-club announcement". news.com.au. News Corporation Australia. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  19. ^ Pryde, Scott (29 October 2025). "Full details locked in as Pezet confirms two-club switch". Zero Tackle. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  20. ^ Ritchie, Dean (25 November 2025). "Melbourne Storm poised to sign Jack Hetherington to replace injured star Eli Katoa". Code Sports. Sydney, New South Wales: News Corporation Australia. Retrieved 25 November 2025.
  21. ^ a b c "Storm secure trio of signings for 2026". melbournestorm.com.au. 3 December 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  22. ^ "Souths enforcer Davy Moale joins Melbourne Storm after immediate release as three-club move revealed". foxsports.com.au. 19 December 2025. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  23. ^ "Moale to join Storm for 2026". melbournestorm.com.au. 19 December 2025. Retrieved 19 December 2025.
  24. ^ Goodwin, Sam (3 December 2025). "Melbourne Storm confirm signing of playmaker from Panthers as three players join NRL club". Yahoo News. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  25. ^ "Storm joins forces with O'Neills". melbournestorm.com.au. 1 November 2023. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  26. ^ "Storm and RedZed extend major partnership to 2028". melbournestorm.com.au. 5 March 2025. Retrieved 5 March 2025.
  27. ^ "Budget Direct announced as Storm's first Platinum Partner". melbournestorm.com.au. 28 October 2025. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
  28. ^ "Revealed: 2026 Home Jersey". melbournestorm.com.au. 1 November 2025. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
  29. ^ "Revealed: 2026 Away Jersey". melbournestorm.com.au. 15 November 2025. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
  30. ^ a b "Melbourne Storm will field it's first-ever reserve grade team in the NSW Cup from 2026". news.com.au. News Corporation Australia. 19 September 2025. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
  31. ^ a b c "Storm to enter new era of Pathways". melbournestorm.com.au. 19 September 2025. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
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