The Sydney Roosters 2009 NRL campaign will kick off with a family fun day planned for the traditional round 1 match against South Sydney Rabbitohs this Sunday 15 March.
The Roosters will host the biggest opening season match in years with plenty of big things planned for families and footy lovers alike.
[17 SEPTEMBER, 2008]
NRL: Watch Storm v Broncos LIVEFor all Melbourne Storm fans who can’t get to Brisbane to watch Saturday night’s semi-final against the Brisbane Broncos at Suncorp Stadium, and don’t want to wait until 11.25pm to watch it on free-to-air television, don’t fear.
Melbourne Storm, in conjunction with Channel 9, will be hosting a live-site at the Water Front City Piazza, Docklands this Saturday night.
Come and watch as the Melbourne Storm attempt to knock the Broncos out of the 2008 NRL finals race, and advance to the preliminary final against the Sharks in Sydney next Friday night.
Details as follows:
WHAT: Semi-final Storm v Broncos Live Site DATE: Saturday 20th September 2008 TIME: 6:30pm – 9:30pm VENUE: Water Front City Piazza, Docklands MELWAYS REFERNCE: Map 2E D4
For more information contact: Publicity Manager - Lizzie Joyce: 0408 234 109 |
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Chris Couch Media Manager
Melbourne Storm Rugby League Club | ||
[07 SEPTEMBER, 2008]
NRL Melbourne Storm seal minor premiership 2008 Thousands of Storm fans gathered at Olympic Park tonight to celebrate a 40-4 win over the South Sydney Rabbitohs, a third consecutive minor premiership and to say goodbye to a club legend.
The chase was on at Olympic Park on with the Storm winning by 36 points to snatch top spot from Manly at the end of the home and away season. A margin of 26 points and a win was needed by Melbourne to claim the J.J Giltinan Shield.
Olympic Park also welcomed for the last time n a home-and-away game veteran Matt Geyer, who has been with Melbourne since their induction into the league in 1998.
The script could not have been written any better for Geyer with a great pass from fullback Billy Slater setting him up for the first try of the match to send the loyal home fans into delirium.
The Storm looked like a team on a mission as Smith converted the try and drew the chance of Melbourne’s third consecutive minor premiership six points closer.
The Storm were all about attack in the opening ten minutes of the match with constant pressure being put on the Rabbitohs at both ends of the field.
A spanner was thrown in the works when Slater was sin-binned for 10 minutes for a professional foul only metres from his own try-line. But the Rabbitohs couldn’t capitalise, and in fact it was the Storm who scored next.
Anthony Quinn took on the South Sydney defence and slammed the ball over the line for the team’s second try.
The Rabbitohs were not without spirit, with Nathan Merritt scoring a try with less than ten minutes remaining in the opening term bringing the margin back to ten points.
Just as there seemed to be a momentum shift in favour of South Sydney, the Storm were rewarded for their continual attacking efforts with, a try from Ryan Hoffman moments before half-time swinging the moments back in Melbourne’s favour.
The second half opened up quietly with ten minutes passing without a score. The silence was broken at ‘The Graveyard’ with a classic Slater run sending the ball over the line and setting the crowd alight.
Suddenly, what had seemed to be a formidable challenge at the beginning of the match was only four points away. With 26 minutes remaining, a single try would steal top spot from Manly.
With a play that was a combination of all that makes Melbourne a deserved minor premier, Folau gathered the loose ball and Slater, with speed slammed the ball over the line to seal top spot.
Smith provided Melbourne with a little bit of breathing room, converting the try with 21 minutes remaining, providing the Storm with a 28-point lead.
The Rabbitohs continued to press forward, but Melbourne’s pressure at both ends of the field forced mistakes and led to loss of possession for the visiting team.
Brett Anderson was next on the scoresheet for the Storm, a Cooper Cronk kick sending the winger on his way over the try-line.
In a match that went all Melbourne’s way a late try from Jeremy Smith crowned the Melbourne Storm as minor premiers for the third year in a row.
It was even sweeter for Matt Geyer, taking the opportunity to kick the final goal, putting it through in style to a standing ovation from the Melbourne crowd.
STORM 40 (Tries: Slater 2, Geyer, C Smith, J Smith, Quinn, Hoffman, Anderson; Goals: Smith 3, Geyer) def. RABBITOHS 4 (Try: Merritt) at Olympic Park |
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Chris Couch Media Manager
Melbourne Storm Rugby League Club | ||
Melbourne Storm’s Billy Slater and Israel Folau will be arriving at Sydney airport for tonight’s Dally M Awards Ceremony on Qantas flight QF442 at 4.20pm.
Greg Inglis is already in Sydney and will not be at the airport.
Cam Smith is not travelling due to a corked thigh. With Smith required in Sydney yesterday for the Final Eight Captain’s Call, Storm medical staff did not want Smith travelling to Sydney two days in a row.
Slater, Inglis and Folau will be departing Sydney airport tomorrow morning on Qantas flight QF415 at 8.00am.
Melbourne Storm will tomorrow night honour Matt Geyer, the club’s last remaining foundation player, at a formal cocktail party on the 89th floor of the Eureka Tower in celebration of his stellar career at the club.
Geyer will retire at the end of this season after 11 years at the club, with over 250 first-grade games to his name, along with 111 tries and 104 goals (so far).
The event will kick-off from 7.00pm as Geyer, his family and guests arrive on the purple carpet at the base of the Eureka Tower, before the formal speeches and presentations take place from 7.35pm.
The formal NRL part of the evening should be completed by approximately 8.05pm.
Media are invited to capture vision and take photos, as well as interview Geyer and any other guests of interest on the purple carpet; and capture the formal speeches.
WHAT: Matt Geyer farewell cocktail party
WHERE: Eureka Tower, 89th floor – 7 Riverside Quay, Southbank
WHEN: Wednesday, September 3rd from 7.00pm
WHO: Matt Geyer and his family; the entire Storm coaching and playing staff; as well as VIP guests such as Club Ambassadors Molly Meldrum, Nicole Livingstone and Marty Fields; brother Mark Geyer; Storm founder John Ribot; foundation coach Chris Anderson; former teammate Marcus Bai; and Club Chairman Dr Rob Moodie.
Geyer stats:
Melbourne Storm Debut – v Western Suburbs Magpies Round 2, 1998
Premierships – 2 (1999 and 2007)
Melbourne Storm Clubman of the Year – 2002
Melbourne Storm Life Member Inductee – 2005
Melbourne Storm Season Leading Try Scorer – 1999 (20) & 2000 (14)
Melbourne Storm Season Leading Point Scorer – 1999 (242)
State-of-Origin – 3 games (2000)
City Origin - 2006
Geyer’s Melbourne Storm Club Records:
Most Points in a Match - 34 (4 tries and 9 goals) v Western Suburbs Magpies in Round 10, 1999
Most Tries in a Match- 4 v Auckland in Round 20, 2000 &, and 4 v Western Suburbs Magpies in Round 10, 1999
First Player to play 200 Club Games - v Sharks in Round 20, 2006
First Player to play 250 Club Games - v Tigers in Round 18, 2008
Points (so far) – 652 (111 tries and 104 goals)
The Storm did their for-and-against tally no harm tonight with a commanding 40-6 win against the Penrith Panthers at CUA Stadium, with man-of-the-moment Greg Inglis helping himself to a hat-trick and closing to within two tries of Manly’s Brett Stewart and Brisbane’s Denan Kemp at the top of the league’s try-scorers list.
The performance was particular pleasing to Storm coach Craig Bellamy, but he was quick to point out there are still areas they need to work on.
“I was really happy with our first-half,” said Bellamy.
“We started the second-half a bit slow, but it’s hard to be too critical. I just thought our first-half was really good.
“We expected a tough game out there, obviously the Panthers probably needed to win tonight to stay alive and I thought our guys handled that really well in the first-half.
“If someone had of told me at the beginning of the game that would be the score I would have been really happy with that. I’m really surprised actually.”
Given Manly’s 32-point win over Wests Tigers on the weekend, the big win and subsequent points differential boost was important in Melbourne’s quest for a third straight minor premiership.
“The minor premiership, it’s a really good scalp to have on your belt, it’s a little bit under-rated in our game and we’d be proud to hold that again,” said Bellamy.
“But we’ve still got two games to go and we can still finish second or third I think so we’re just going to concern ourselves with Newcastle now. We’ll do our revue of this game tomorrow and we’ll go from there.”
After feeling each other out for the first 10 minutes, Melbourne opened the scoring when halfback Cooper Cronk sent a superb pass across the face of Israel Folau and into the arms of winger Steve Turner who out-sprinted the Panthers defence to the try-line.
Four minutes later Cronk was at it again. A perfectly placed kick from the Storm number seven saw Billy Slater challenge Penrith halfback Luke Lewis on the try-line, the clever fullback knocking the ball back into the waiting arms of Inglis who had the simple task of falling over the try-line.
A couple of minutes later Cronk was at the centre of the action again.
Kicking from his own 30 metre line, Cronk was taken out late by Luke Priddis, gifting the Storm possession from a penalty on the Panthers 20-metre line. From there the ball was spread out to Melbourne’s left with first Inglis then Matt Geyer flicking passes in the tackle, with Anthony Quinn crossing in the corner to make the score 14-nil.
Another Storm kick towards the try-line, this time from Cam Smith, saw Quinn challenge Penrith winger Michael Gordon. Both missed with their hands, but the ball ricocheted off Gordon’s head into the in-goal area, and Inglis was on the spot once again. With Cam Smith’s conversion the score had blown out to 20-nil.
The second-half started much better for the Panthers. Nathan Smith scored Penrith’s first try for the game when first Gordon made a break down the line, and then the Storm gave away an offside penalty to give the Panthers great field position and momentum.
However, their joy was short-lived when a neat set-play from Melbourne saw Slater gather at his toes brilliantly, before passing to Folau. Folau committed a couple of Penrith defenders to the tackle, but the giant centre got his right arm free to offload to Turner who scored his second for the night.
A penalty against Rhys Wesser for incorrectly playing the ball saw Melbourne get possession 10 metres from the try-line. Cam Smith tapped and instead of passing to a runner, went himself, catching the Panthers defenders unawares as he surged across the try-line for the Storm’s sixth try of the night.
Only minutes later front-rower Brett White crossed under the posts, but was deemed to have been held up by Wesser. However, only two plays later and White’s front-row partner Jeff Lima wasn’t to be denied, crossing to extend Melbourne’s lead out to 30-points.
With four minutes remaining, Inglis put the icing on the cake, scoring his third of the night after more terrific lead-up work from Slater.
The Storm will now turn its attention to Newcastle, the penultimate home-and-away game at EnergyAustralia Stadium next Saturday night. Knights coach Brian Smith was in the crowd tonight, and it would be interesting to know what he thought of Melbourne’s performance.
STORM 40 (Tries: Inglis 3, Turner 2, Quinn, Smith, Lima; Goals: C Smith 4) def. PANTHERS 6 (Try: N Smith; Goal: Gordon) at CUA Stadium, Penrith
______________________________
Chris Couch
Media Manager
Melbourne Storm Rugby League Club
MATT GEYER - [21 AUGUST, 2008]
WHAT: Round 24 of the 2008 Telstra Premiership season
WHERE: CUA Stadium, Penrith
WHEN: Monday, August 25th @ 7.00pm
ON TV: Fox Sports 2 LIVE from 7.00pm
CHECK IT OUT: Melbourne Storm’s website with all the latest stats, profiles, updates, schedule and training times, alerts, news etc…. www.melbournestorm.com.au
IN BRIEF
Melbourne won their second top-four clash in as many weeks, this time defeating the Sydney Roosters 30-6 at Olympic Park, moving them to outright leadership on the NRL ladder.
Penrith bounced back from a crushing defeat at the hands of Canberra to defeat the Bulldogs last week 52-16 to keep their finals hopes alive.
FAST FACTS
• Penrith have been first try-scorers in five of their past six games at CUA Stadium
• Five of Melbourne’s six losses have been away from home
• Penrith have won only two of their seven night games at CUA Stadium in 2008
• Melbourne has won 14 of their 17 night games this season
DID YOU KNOW?
Matt Geyer will be playing his last game at the ground where it all began during his playing days as a junior from Mt Druitt, with retirement coming at the end of this season.
Having not made the grade with the Panthers, Geyer went on to play six games for the now defunct Western Reds, before moving to Melbourne when the Storm founded in 1998.
Geyer has since gone on to play 255 games for the club, scoring 111 tries and 104 goals in the process.
Let’s hope he adds to his try-scoring tally on Monday night!
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Total: Played: 17, Storm: 11, Panthers: 6
At CUA Stadium: Played: 6, Storm: 2, Panthers: 4
FOR AND AGAINST 2008
Points for: Storm: 486, Panthers: 462
Points against: Storm: 255, Panthers: 495
Tries for: Storm: 87, Panthers: 78
Points differential: Storm: +231, Panthers: -33
LAST ROUND MATCHES
Storm def. Roosters 30-6 @ Olympic Park, Melbourne
Panthers def. Bulldogs 52-16 @ CUA Stadium, Penrith
LAST EIGHT CLASHES
| YEAR | RESULT | VENUE |
| 2007 | Storm def. Panthers 30-20 @ | Olympic Park |
| 2006 | Storm def. Panthers 17-16 @ | Olympic Park |
| 2006 | Storm def. Panthers 40-18 @ | Hindmarsh Stadium |
| 2005 | Panthers def. Storm 28-14 @ | Olympic Park |
| 2005 | Panthers def. Storm 36-16 @ | CUA Stadium |
| 2004 | Storm def. Panthers 66-14@ | Olympic Park |
| 2004 | Panther def. Storm 30-26 @ | CUA Stadium |
| 2003 | Storm def. Panthers 32-12 @ | CUA Stadium |
THE STORM STORY SO FAR
WORLD CLUB CHALLENGE: STORM 4 (Try: Hoffman) def. by RHINOS 11 (Try: Donald; Goals: Sinfield 3; Field Goal: Sinfield) at Elland Road, Leeds
ROUND 1: STORM 32 (Tries: Slater 3, Johnson, Tagataese; Goals: C. Smith 5, Turner) def. WARRIORS 18 (Tries: Vatuvei 2, Ropati; Goals: Witt 3) at Telstra Dome, Melbourne
ROUND 2: STORM 16 (Tries: Aitken, White, Falou; Goals: C. Smith 2) def. by SHARKS 17 (Tries: Kearney, Gallen, Simmons; Goals: Covell 2; Field Goals: Kimmorley) at Olympic Park, Melbourne
ROUND 3: Storm (Try: Slater; Goal: C. Smith) def. by ROOSTERS (Try: Kenny-Dowell; Goals: FitzGibbon 3) at Sydney Football Stadium
ROUND 4: STORM 28 (Tries: Quinn 3, Folau, Hoffman; Goals: Smith 4) def. BRONCOS 8 (Tries: Robinson, Stagg) at Olympic Park, Melbourne
ROUND 5: STORM 26 (Tries: Slater 2, Inglis, Quinn, Hoffman; Goals: Smith 3) def. SEA EAGLES 4 (Try: Barney) at Olympic Park
ROUND 6: STORM 23 (Tries: Chambers, Turner, Slater, Folau; Goals: C. Smith 3; Field Goal: Cronk) def. RAIDERS 16 (Tries: Best, Plum, Purtell; Goals: Carney 2) at Canberra Stadium
ROUND 7: STORM 12 (Tries: Inglis, Folau; Goals: C. Smith 2) def. COWBOYS 10 (Tries: Williams 2; Goals: Thurston) at Dairy Farmer’s Stadium
ROUND 8: BYE
ROUND 9: STORM 18 (Tries: Folau 2, Quinn; Goals: C. Smith 3) def. KNIGHTS 4 (Try: Mullen) at Olympic Park, Melbourne
ROUND 10: STORM 12 (Tries: Chambers, Manu; Goals: Smith, Turner) def. by DRAGONS 36 (Tries: Nightingale 2, B. Morris, J Morris, Lett, Soward; Goals: Soward 6) at ANZ Stadium
ROUND 11: STORM 15 (Tries: Chambers, J. Smith; Goals: C. Smith 2, Field Goals: Cronk) def. RABBITOHS 12 (Tries: Vagana 2; Goals: Luke) at Bluetongue Stadium, Gosford
ROUND 12: STORM 46 (Tries: Geyer 2, C. Smith, Folau, Turner, J. Smith, Crocker, Cronk; Goals: C. Smith 7) def. BULLDOGS 0 at Olympic Park
ROUND 13: STORM 0 def. by TITANS 18 (Tries: Delaney, Meyers, Jeffrey; Goals: Rogers 3) at Skilled Park
ROUND 14: BYE
ROUND 15: STORM 48 (Tries: Inglis 3, Turner 2, J Smith, Slater, Geyer, Folau; Goals: C Smith 6) def. COWBOYS 20 (Tries: Henry, Williams, Webb, Cashmere; Goals: Thurston 2) at Olympic Park
ROUND 16: STORM 22 (Tries: Manu 2, Tomane, Cronk; Goals: Turner 2, Cronk) def. by EELS 24 (Tries: Tautai, Williams, Reddy, Inu; Goals: Burt 4) at Parramatta Stadium
ROUND 17: STORM 30 (Tries: Inglis 2, Slater, Manu, Quinn, Turner; Goals: Smith 3) def. RAIDERS 14 (Tries: Monaghan, Carney, Chalk; Goals: Carney) at Olympic Park
ROUND 18: STORM 30 (Tries: Inglis 3, Slater, Manu; Goals: C. Smith 5) def. TIGERS 18 (Tries: Tuiaki, Hodgson, Ryan; Goals: Hodgson 3) at Campbelltown Sports Stadium
ROUND 19: STORM 26 (Tries: J Smith, Lima, Geyer, Turner, Folau; Goals: C Smith 3) def. DRAGONS 0 at Olympic Park
ROUND 20: STORM 6 (Try: Manu; Goal: C Smith) def. by WARRIORS 8 (Try: Fai; Goals: Hohaia 2) at Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland
ROUND 21: STORM 44 (Tries: Folau 2, Inglis 2, Turner, Quinn, Hoffman, Geyer, J Smith; Goals: Cam Smith 4) def. TITANS 4 (Try: Ropana) at Olympic Park
ROUND 22: STORM 16 (Tries: Geyer, Folau, Cronk; Goals: C Smith 2) def. SEA EAGLES 10 (Tries: Hall, Williams; Goals: Matai) at Brookvale Oval
ROUND 23: STORM 30 (Tries: Quinn 2, C Smith, Cronk, Slater; Goals: Smith 5) def. ROOSTERS 6 (Try: M Aubusson; Goal: Roberts 1) at Olympic Park
2008 TRY SCORERS (STORM)
Inglis 12, Folau 12, Slater 11, Quinn 9, Turner 7, Manu 6, Geyer 6, J. Smith 5, Cronk 4, Chambers 3, Hoffman 3, C. Smith 2, Johnson, Tagataese, Aitken, White, Crocker, Tomane, Lima
2008 GOAL SCORERS (STORM)
C. Smith 62, Turner 4, J. Smith, Cronk
2008 FIELD GOAL SCORERS (STORM)
Cronk 2
2008 POINTSCORERS (STORM)
C Smith 132, Inglis 48, Folau 48, Slater 44, Quinn 36, Turner 36, Manu 24, Geyer 24, J. Smith 22, Cronk 20, Chambers 12, Hoffman 12, Johnson 4, Tagataese 4, Aitken 4, White 4, Crocker 4, Tomane 4, Lima 4
MELBOURNE STORM MEDIBANK PRIVATE INJURY UPDATE
Ryan Hoffman (ankle): 2 weeks
Danny Vaughan (knee): season
Ben MacDougall (knee): season
Dane Nielsen (shoulder): season
Will Chambers (knee): season
THE STORM AHEAD
Round 25: Saturday, August 30th v Knights @ EnergyAustralia Stadium, 5.30pm
Round 26: Sunday, September 8th v Rabbitohs @ Olympic Park, 7.00pm
TELSTRA PREMIERSHIP LADDER
| POSITION | CLUB | POINTS |
| 1 | Storm | 34 |
| 2 | Sea Eagles | 32 |
| 3 | Sharks | 32 |
| 4 | Roosters | 30 |
| 5 | Broncos | 27 |
| 6 | Raiders | 26 |
| 7 | Dragons | 26 |
| 8 | Warriors | 26 |
| 9 | Panthers | 25 |
| 10 | Knights | 24 |
| 11 | Wests Tigers | 24 |
| 12 | Eels | 24 |
| 13 | Titans | 24 |
| 14 | Rabbitohs | 20 |
| 15 | Bulldogs | 14 |
| 16 | Cowboys | 12 |
SQUAD FOR MONDAY'S GAME
Starting team:
1. Billy Slater
2. Steve Turner
3. Matt Geyer
4. Israel Folau
5. Anthony Quinn
6. Greg Inglis
7. Cooper Cronk
8. Jeff Lima
9. Cam Smith
10. Brett White
11. Michael Crocker
12. Jeremy Smith
13. Dallas Johnson
Interchange:
14. Aiden Tolman, 15. Adam Blair, 16. Sika Manu, 17. Antonio Kaufusi.
Coach: Craig Bellamy.
See below for Melbourne Storm's planned training schedule for the week beginning Monday, August 18th.
Please note these details are subject to change. Any changes to the training schedule will be made to the "Storm Schedule" on the Melbourne Storm website, www.melbournestorm.com.au, as soon as possible.
All sessions will take place at MC Labour Park unless otherwise stated.
Monday, August 18th:
10.30am - 12.45pm: Weights
Tuesday, August 19th:
1.00pm: Skills and Conditioning Session
Wednesday, August 20th:
9.45am - 12.00pm: Weights
2.00pm: Skills Session (Xavier College, Barkers Road)
Thursday, August 21st:
DAY OFF
Friday, August 22nd:
10.15am: Speed and Ballwork Session
1.00pm - 3.15pm: Weights
Saturday, August 23rd:
DAY OFF
Sunday, August 24th:
2.00pm: Flight from Melbourne to Sydney
Monday, August 25th:
7.00pm: STORM v PANTHERS (CUA Stadium, Penrith)
______________________________
Chris Couch
Media Manager
Melbourne Storm Rugby League Club
Princes Park, Gate 3, Royal Parade, Carlton North VIC 3054
PO Box 141 Parkville VIC 3052
E-mail: ccouch@melbournestorm.com.au
Website: www.melbournestorm.com.au
NRL Table toppers the Melbourne Storm will be the sounding board for struggling Sydney Roosters this weekend, the Roosters downed by the Parramatta Eels and looking for redemption close to the Top 8 finals series.
The game will be played at Olympic Park in Melbourne from 7.35pm.
NRL squad for Friday’s game:
Starting team:
1. Billy Slater
2. Steve Turner
3. Matt Geyer
4. Israel Folau
5. Anthony Quinn
6. Greg Inglis
7. Cooper Cronk
8. Jeff Lima
9. Cam Smith ©
10. Brett White
11. Michael Crocker
12. Ryan Hoffman
13. Dallas Johnson
Interchange:
14. Jeremy Smith, 15. Adam Blair, 16. Sika Manu, 17. Antonio Kaufusi.
Coach: Craig Bellamy.
Under-20’s squad for Friday’s game:
Starting team:
1. Gareth Widdop
2. Malo Feterika
3. Sam Joe
4. Zeb Tawha ©
5. Josh Jerome
6. Luke Kelly
7. Liam Foran
8. Aiden Tolman
9. James Woolford
10. Louis Fanene
11. Aiden Guerra
12. Aidan Guerra
13. Will Naitoro
Interchange:
14. Jay Aston, 15. Pulou Vaituutuu, 16. Vili Faingaa, 17. Matt Croker.
Coach: Brad Arthur
______________________________
Chris Couch
Media Manager
Melbourne Storm Rugby League Club
Princes Park, Gate 3, Royal Parade, Carlton North VIC 3054
PO Box 141 Parkville VIC 3052
E-mail: ccouch@melbournestorm.com.au
Website: www.melbournestorm.com.au
Selected players will be made available after the completion of the session.
Melbourne Storm Publicity Manager Lizzie Joyce will be the media’s point of contact. Lizzie’s number is 0408 234 109.
WHAT: Melbourne Storm recovery session
WHERE: Richmond Pool, Gleadell Street
WHEN: Saturday, August 2nd from 10.00am
