Melbourne Storm staff and players have provided a grim appraisal of their efforts to transform Victoria into a rugby league state, as the club prepares for one of the sport’s most critical years in the southern capital.
A generation after 87,000 spectators crowded the MCG for State of Origin in 1994, breaking the rugby league attendance record, and 26 years after the NRL’s Melbourne franchise was established, the Storm have produced only five homegrown men’s players.
The competitive Melbourne sporting marketplace is on the verge of losing another casualty, with Super Rugby team the Melbourne Rebels in administration, and the AFL continues to dominate the city’s winter sporting routines.
Ahead of the NRL season, which will bring State of Origin back to Melbourne for the first time since 2018, Storm forward Christian Welch stated that the club’s record of generating youth talent was “probably not good enough to be honest”.
“The reality is, we’re 25, 26 years old,” he told me. “We’ve had five Victorian men’s players.”
Tim Glasby, the Storm’s head of paths, shared his view. “We’re really disappointed that we haven’t had more,” he went on to say. “Five in 25 years isn’t enough.”
While the production pipeline may require maintenance, the Storm appears to be in fine health. Last year, average attendance surpassed 20,000 for the first time, during a season in which Victoria shattered its record for community rugby league registrations.
Melbourne Storm will enter an under-17 squad in the Harold Matthews Cup for the first time this season, demonstrating the club’s increased commitment to and financial investment in junior development. Frank Ponissi, the club’s senior general manager of football, had long desired to establish a junior side.
“Our guys in Victoria, they were getting that exposure at age 15 for a quick schoolboy stint and then that was it until they were about 18,” Mr. Glasby explained. “So we really needed to do something to offer them a better elite pathway.”
Although the team has only fielded five Victorians in the NRL, the trend is positive. Three of the players, Young Tonumaipea, Dean Ieremia, and Sua Fa’alogo, are now on the top 30 list.
The club revealed last week that Fa’alogo, who scored two tries in his NRL debut last year and played for Samoa against the Kangaroos, had signed a five-year deal.
Glasby, who played more than 100 games for the Storm, said Fa’alogo has “pretty special athletic traits,” but his growth may have been accelerated if the under-17 squad had been established earlier.
“It just would have helped him with his knowledge around footy and ability to read games,” Glasby added. “It just would have pushed him along a little bit.”
Last season, more than 4,500 men, women, and junior rugby league players registered in Melbourne, with the outer western, northern, and south-eastern growth corridors leading the way. The Storm have developed three suburban training hubs to help players reduce travel time.
“It’s growing very quickly in those areas,” Glasby said. “In the inner city areas, that’s where the AFL is really a lot stronger.”
Harry Grant, who was appointed Storm captain this year, stated that the club recognized the AFL as the dominant code in the city and did not consider the other sport as a competitor.
“I think from day one, Melbourne Storm have been very cautious of how they approach their business considering we’re in AFL country and you want to make the right impressions and do it right,” he added. “It’s important that we respect that, and continue to grow that.”
Welch went on to say “we don’t try and take on Collingwood and Carlton, we try and really fit into the sporting culture.”
The club has frequently collaborated with members of the rival code, and last year hired former Geelong captain Joel Selwood as a leadership coach. Justin Rodski, the Storm’s CEO, joined the team in 2021 after spending ten years with AFL club Essendon.
However, the Melbourne Rebels’ previous problems have demonstrated that the city is not an easy place for foreigners.
Welch, who lives with Melbourne Rebels forward Brad Wilkin, claimed the Super Rugby club’s struggles were taking a toll on its players and dismissed the idea that the Storm would attract some of the union’s members.
“That’s picking at the carcass a little bit there,” he went on to say. “Hopefully the Rebels stay, and continue having a presence in Melbourne.”
The Storm’s season starts on Friday with a home game against premiers Penrith. The AFL’s decision to play its opening round in New South Wales and Queensland means that Melbourne will host the lone match between the two major codes this weekend.
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