2012 Melbourne Storm season

The 2012 Melbourne Storm season was the club's 15th NRL season. Coached by Craig Bellamy and captained by Cameron Smith, they competed in and won the NRL's 2012 Telstra Premiership. The first 9 weeks of the season were very successful, with the club winning all games for what was at the time their best start to a season. From Round 10 to Round 21 they won only 3 games and lost 7, including a 5-game losing streak between Rounds 16 and 21, their second worst ever. From Round 22 onward they recovered their winning form and finished the regular season with five straight wins, finishing in second place. The Storm then went on to defeat South Sydney and Manly in the finals series before going on to face minor premiers, the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in the 2012 NRL Grand Final, winning 14-4 to claim the Premiership.

2012 Melbourne Storm season
NRL Rank2nd
Play-off resultPremiers
2012 recordWins: 17; Draws: 0; Losses: 7
Points scoredFor: 579; Against: 361
Team information
CEORon Gauci
CoachCraig Bellamy
Captain
StadiumAAMI Park – 30,050
Top scorers
TriesBilly Slater (16)
GoalsCameron Smith (78)
PointsCameron Smith (164)
< 2011 List of seasons 2013 >

Jersey

In 2012 the Storm jerseys were made by Kooga. Both the predominantly purple 'home' jersey, and the predominantly white 'away' jersey for 2012 were first instituted by the club in 2010.

Special jerseys

  • Round 5 (NRL Heritage round): replica of the original 1998 jersey.
  • Round 12 (vs the Brisbane Broncos): a special silver V with purple camouflage jersey.[1] A similar jersey was worn in the same game in 2011.
  • Round 19 (vs the North Queensland Cowboys): a one-off promotional jersey was worn to promote The Dark Knight Rises. The jersey was predominantly black with the Batman logo on the front and back.[2]
  • Round 22 (vs the Penrith Panthers): the "Close the Gap" jersey.[3] "Close the Gap" is an Oxfam initiative to influence Australian government healthcare and Indigenous policies with an aim to achieve health equality for Indigenous Australians by 2030.[4] The NRL began supporting this campaign with a "Close the Gap Round" in 2010.[5]

Season summary

  • Round 3 - Billy Slater scored two tries against the Gold Coast Titans to take his career total to 130, becoming the highest try scoring fullback in Australian Rugby League history.[6]
  • Round 4 - Billy Slater scored a try double for the fourth consecutive week, a career first.
  • Round 5 (Heritage Round) - The Storm celebrated their 15th Anniversary and Bryan Norrie played his 50th game.
  • Round 7 - The Storm equalled their best start to a season (2007) with their 7th straight win.
  • Round 8 - The Storm recorded an eighth straight win over the New Zealand Warriors, completing the best start to a season in the club's history.
  • Round 9 - The Storm won their ninth straight game.
  • Round 10 - The Storm conceded their first match of the season in an away game, losing 12-10 to the Cronulla Sharks.
  • Round 12 - Will Chambers played his 50th NRL game while Todd Lowrie played his 50th game for the Storm,
  • Round 13 - Todd Lowrie played his 150th NRL game.
  • Round 14 - Craig Bellamy coached his 250th game for the Melbourne Storm against the Wests Tigers.
  • Round 19 - Cooper Cronk played his 200th NRL game.
  • Round 20 - With their fourth consecutive loss, the Storm equalled their second worst losing streak in the club's history to date.
  • Round 21 - With their fifth consecutive loss, the Storm recorded a new second-worst losing streak. It was the Storm's longest losing streak during Craig Bellamy's ten-year tenure.[7]
  • Round 22 - The Storm ended their losing streak with a 46-6 defeat of the Penrith Panthers. The game was notable for Sisa Waqa scoring the NRL season's fastest try after only 35 seconds of play. It was also the Storm's biggest score of the season.
  • Round 23 - Mahe Fonua made his debut as the first fully born and bred Victorian to play NRL for the Storm.[8] Jessie Bromwich also played his 50th game for the Storm.
  • Round 24 - Cameron Smith scored his 1300th career point.
  • Round 25 - The Storm recorded a 20-18 win against the Cronulla Sharks with two tries inside the final three minutes of play, after trailing 18-10. The result meant that the Storm's overall wins percentage increased to 63.64%, elevating the Storm to first place on the 'all-time' score table for the first time, ahead of the Brisbane Broncos.
  • Finals Week 1 - The Storm began their finals campaign with a win over the South Sydney Rabbitohs, earning them a week's break and a home preliminary final.
  • Finals Week 3 - The Storm completed a 40 - 12 defeat of Manly to secure a spot in the 2012 NRL Grand Final against the Canterbury Bulldogs.
  • Grand Final - The Storm defeated the Canterbury Bulldogs 14 - 4 to claim the 2012 NRL premiership. Cameron Smith, while having a bad night with the boot (1 from 5 attempts), kicked his 600th career goal. The Grand Final was also notable because it was the first to feature a scoreless second half of football.

Milestone games

RoundPlayerMilestone
Round 1Siosaia VaveStorm debut
Round 2Jason RylesStorm debut
Round 5Bryan Norrie50th Storm game
Round 12Michael GreenfieldStorm debut
Round 12Will Chambers50th game
Round 12Todd Lowrie50th Storm game
Round 13Todd Lowrie150th NRL game
Round 14Craig Bellamy250th game coached
Round 19Cooper Cronk200th game
Round 20Richard Fa'aosoStorm debut
Round 23Jesse Bromwich50th game
Round 23Mahe FonuaNRL debut

Statistics

Statistics source:[9] Statistics current following the Grand Final.

NameAppTGFGPtsGoal%
Maurice Blair40000
Jesse Bromwich272008
Will Chambers18130052
Cooper Cronk26100141
Matt Duffie17100040
Richard Fa'aoso60000
Mahe Fonua41004
Michael Greenfield10000
Ryan Hinchcliffe2740016
Ryan Hoffman27110044
Luke Kelly10000
Rory Kostjasyn141004
Jaiman Lowe151004
Todd Lowrie2340016
Sika Manu1930012
Dane Nielsen2270028
Bryan Norrie252008
Justin O'Neill21110044
Kevin Proctor2360024
Anthony Quinn2030012
Jason Ryles221004
Billy Slater21160064
Cameron Smith25278016469.03% (78/113)
Siosaia Vave140000
Sisa Waqa1170028
Gareth Widdop2641204080.00% (12/14)
26 players used-11990165770.31% (90/128)

Most points in a game: 14

  • Cameron Smith with 1 try and 5 goals vs Manly in Round 15 (18 June 2012).
  • Cameron Smith with 7 goals vs Penrith in Round 22 (4 August 2012).

Most tries in a game: 3

  • Will Chambers vs New Zealand in Round 8 (25 April 2012).
  • Justin O'Neill vs Penrith in Round 9 (5 May 2012).

Fixtures

Regular season

DateRoundOpponentVenueResultScoreTriesGoalsAttendanceReport
3 MarchRound 1 Canberra RaidersCanberra Stadium, CanberraWin19-24Slater (2), Cronk, O'NeillSmith 4/47,862[10]
11 MarchRound 2 South Sydney RabbitohsAAMI Park, MelbourneWin24-10Nielsen (2), Slater (2), DuffieSmith 2/415,872[11]
18 MarchRound 3 Gold Coast TitansSkilled Park, Gold CoastWin6-30Duffie (2), Slater (2), Manu, QuinnSmith 2/5, Widdop 1/111,254[12]
24 MarchRound 4 Sydney RoostersAAMI Park, MelbourneWin44-4Slater (2), Cronk (2), Nielsen, Proctor, Hoffman, ChambersSmith 5/7, Widdop 1/111,897[13]
31 MarchRound 5 Newcastle KnightsAAMI Park, MelbourneWin34-22Widdop, Duffie, Hoffman, Slater, Chambers, LowrieSmith 5/611,369[14]
8 AprilRound 6 North Queensland CowboysDairy Farmers Stadium, TownsvilleWin18-42Duffie (2), Proctor (2), Chambers (2), Hinchcliffe, RylesSmith 5/820,206[15]
14 AprilRound 7 Canterbury-Bankstown BulldogsAAMI Park, MelbourneWin12-6Hinchcliffe, HoffmanSmith 2/2, Cronk 0/1 (FG)14,912[16]
25 AprilRound 8 New Zealand WarriorsAAMI Park, MelbourneWin32-14Chambers (3), Nielsen (2), O'NeillSmith 4/620,333[17]
5 MayRound 9 Penrith PanthersCentrebet Stadium, PenrithWin10-44O'Neill (3), Duffie, Cronk, Hoffman, Chambers, HinchcliffeSmith 5/7, Widdop 1/19,517[18]
13 MayRound 10 Cronulla-Sutherland SharksEndeavour Field, CronullaLoss12-10Nielsen, DuffieSmith 1/214,595[19]
18–21 MayRound 11Bye
25 MayRound 12 Brisbane BroncosAAMI Park, MelbourneWin34-10Lowrie (2), Slater (2), Chambers, O'NeillWiddop 5/613,200[20]
3 JuneRound 13 New Zealand WarriorsMount Smart Stadium, AucklandWin10-22Widdop, Lowe, Chambers, SmithSmith 3/520,487[21]
8 JuneRound 14 Wests TigersAAMI Park, MelbourneLoss6-10NielsenWiddop 1/211,274[22]
18 JuneRound 15 Manly-Warringah Sea EaglesBrookvale Oval, ManlyWin22-26Lowrie, Smith, Norrie, DuffieSmith 5/512,106[23]
24 JuneRound 16 Canterbury-Bankstown BulldogsVirgin Australia Stadium, MackayLoss20-4QuinnSmith 0/111,876[24]
29 June-2 JulyRound 17Bye
7 JulyRound 18 Canberra RaidersAAMI Park, MelbourneLoss12-40O'Neill (2)Widdop 2/212,214[25]
14 JulyRound 19 North Queensland CowboysAAMI Park, MelbourneLoss16-20Duffie, Quinn, WiddopSmith 2/310,688[26]
21 JulyRound 20 Parramatta EelsParramatta Stadium, ParramattaLoss16-10Kostjasyn, HoffmanSmith 1/29,029[27]
27 JulyRound 21 St George-Illawarra DragonsWIN Stadium, WollongongLoss26-18Chambers, Hinchcliffe, ProctorSmith 3/311,477[28]
4 AugustRound 22 Penrith PanthersAAMI Park, MelbourneWin46-6Cronk (2), O'Neill (2), Waqa (2), Bromwich, ManuSmith 7/89,223[29]
10 AugustRound 23 Gold Coast TitansAAMI Park, MelbourneWin24-16Slater, Cronk, Hoffman, WiddopSmith 4/49,108[30]
17 AugustRound 24 Brisbane BroncosSuncorp Stadium, BrisbaneWin18-19Waqa (2), CronkSmith 3/3, Cronk 1/1 (FG)41,467[31]
27 AugustRound 25 Cronulla SharksAAMI Park, MelbourneWin20-18Hoffman (2), Waqa, ChambersSmith 2/412,847[32]
1 SeptemberRound 26 Wests TigersLeichhardt Oval, BalmainWin6-26Hoffman, Manu, Norrie, Proctor, WaqaSmith 3/510,834[33]

Finals

DateRoundOpponentVenueResultScoreTriesGoalsAttendanceReport
8 SeptemberWeek 1 - Qualifying Final South Sydney RabbitohsAAMI Park, MelbourneWin24-6Hoffman, Slater, Fonua, WaqaSmith 4/519,750[34]
21 SeptemberWeek 3 - Preliminary Final Manly-Warringah Sea EaglesAAMI Park, MelbourneWin40-12Cronk (2), Slater (2), Chambers, Bromwich, ProctorSmith 5/8, Widdop 1/125,543[35]
30 SeptemberWeek 4 - Grand Final Canterbury-Bankstown BulldogsANZ Stadium, SydneyWin4-14Hoffman, O'Neill, SlaterSmith 1/582,976[36]

Ladder

2012 NRL season
Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
1 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 2418062568369+19940
2 Melbourne Storm (P) 2417072579361+21838
3 South Sydney Rabbitohs 2416082559438+12136
4 Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 2416082497403+9436
5 North Queensland Cowboys 2415092597445+15234
6 Canberra Raiders 24130112545536+930
7 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 24121112445441+429
8 Brisbane Broncos 24120122481447+3428
9 St. George Illawarra Dragons 24110132405438-3326
10 Wests Tigers 24110132506551-4526
11 Gold Coast Titans 24100142449477-2824
12 Newcastle Knights 24100142448488-4024
13 Sydney Roosters 2481152462626-16421
14 New Zealand Warriors 2480162497609-11220
15 Penrith Panthers 2480162409575-16620
16 Parramatta Eels 2460182431674-24316

2012 Coaches

2012 Squad

As of 16 July 2013.

No. Nat. Player Pos First match with club Previous club
55 Cameron Smith (c) HK 2002 Melbourne Storm
60 Billy Slater FB 2003 Melbourne Storm
62 Ryan Hoffman SR,LK 2003 Melbourne Storm
73 Cooper Cronk HB 2004 Melbourne Storm
93 Anthony Quinn WG,CE 2007 Newcastle Knights
98 Will Chambers CE 2007 Queensland Reds
99 Sika Manu SR 2007 Melbourne Storm
105 Dane Nielsen WG,CE 2008 Melbourne Storm
106 Kevin Proctor SR 2008 Melbourne Storm
110 Ryan Hinchcliffe HK,LK 2009 Canberra Raiders
116 Luke Kelly FE,HB 2009 Melbourne Storm
119 Jesse Bromwich PR 2010 Melbourne Storm
120 Rory Kostjasyn HK,LK 2010 Melbourne Storm
122 Todd Lowrie SR,LK 2010 Parramatta Eels
123 Bryan Norrie PR 2010 Cronulla Sharks
124 Matt Duffie WG,CE 2010 Melbourne Storm
125 Gareth Widdop HB 2010 Melbourne Storm
127 Justin O'Neill WG 2010 Sydney Roosters
130 Jaiman Lowe PR,SR 2011 South Sydney Rabbitohs
135 Maurice Blair WG,CE 2011 Penrith Panthers
136 Sisa Waqa CE,WG 2011 Sydney Roosters
138 Jack Afamasaga PR 2011 Cronulla Sharks
139 Siosaia Vave PR 2012 Cronulla Sharks
140 Jason Ryles PR 2012 Sydney Roosters
141 Michael Greenfield SR,LK 2012 St George Illawarra Dragons
142 Richard Fa'aoso PR,SR 2012 Newcastle Knights
143 Mahe Fonua CE 2012 Melbourne Storm
- Slade Griffen HK Yet to Debut Melbourne Storm
- Mitch Johnson FB,WG Yet to Debut Melbourne Storm
- Kenny Bromwich PR,LK Yet to Debut Melbourne Storm
- Jordan McLean PR Yet to Debut Melbourne Storm
- Mitch Garbutt PR,SR Yet to Debut Newcastle Knights
- Ben Hampton HB Yet to Debut Melbourne Storm
- Kirisome Auva'a WG Yet to Debut Melbourne Storm
Matt McGahan HB,FE Yet to Debut Melbourne Storm
Shea Moylan WG,FB -Yet to Debut Brisbane Broncos

2012 Premiership Team

Melbourne Storm
2012 Premiership Team Interchange Coach

Head coach



Legend:
  • (c) Captain(s)
  • (vc) Vice captain(s)

2012 player movement

2012 squad signings

Name From Notes
Jason Ryles Sydney Roosters
Will Chambers Queensland Reds
Ryan Hoffman Wigan Warriors
Michael Greenfield St. George

2012 squad transfers

Name To Notes
Troy Thompson No Team Retired
Beau Champion Gold Coast Titans
Adam Blair Wests Tigers
Dane Chisholm Wests Tigers
Adam Woolnough No Team Retired
Sione Kite Widnes
Chase Stanley St. George
Atelea Vea St. George
Robert Rochow Newcastle Knights

Representative honours

The following players have played a representative match in 2012. (C) = Captain

All Stars MatchCity Vs CountryANZAC TestState of Origin 1State of Origin 2State of Origin 3VB Test[37]
Cooper Cronk
NRL All Stars
Australia
Queensland
Queensland
Queensland
Australia
Ryan Hoffman
City
Australia
Ryan Hinchcliffe
Country
Billy Slater
Australia
Queensland
Queensland
Australia
Cameron Smith
Australia (C)
Queensland (C)
Queensland (C)
Queensland (C)
Australia (C)
Jesse Bromwich
New Zealand
New Zealand
Dane Nielsen
Queensland
Kevin Proctor
New Zealand

Awards

References

  1. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-strom-v-broncos/story-e6frfgbo-1226367104426
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-12-30. Retrieved 2012-07-15.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-12-30. Retrieved 2012-08-31.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. https://www.oxfam.org.au/what-we-do/indigenous-australia/close-the-gap/
  5. https://www.oxfam.org.au/rugby-league-helps-close-the-gap/
  6. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/billy-slater-is-the-best-buzz-has-ever-seen/story-fn7shkwp-1226302728783
  7. http://www.news.com.au/sport/nrl/melbourne-stom-coach-craig-bellamy-says-he-doesnt-think-speculation-about-his-future-is-contributing-to-form-slump/news-story/3e7e47e83345f8625a9271b897c08d59
  8. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/storm-proud-of-hometown-boy-mahe-fonua/story-e6frfgbo-1226447936834
  9. http://stats.rleague.com/rl/teams/melbourne/melbourne2012_sc.html
  10. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/nrl-round-1-raiders-v-storm/story-e6frfgbo-1226288130780
  11. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/lowdown-on-storm-rabbitohs-clash/story-e6frfgbo-1226295194073
  12. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/nrl-round-3-titans-v-storm/story-e6frfgbo-1226302530897
  13. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/melbourne-storm-smashes-sydney-roosters-44-4-at-aami-park/story-e6frfgbx-1226309563419
  14. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/lowdown-on-storm-knights-clash/story-e6frexnr-1226314640820
  15. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/round-6-cowboys-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226321506553
  16. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/melbourne-storm-make-it-sevens-wins-on-the-trot-with-win-over-the-bulldogs/story-e6frexnr-1226326539945
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  19. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-sharks-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226354046436
  20. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-strom-v-broncos/story-e6frfgbo-1226367104426
  21. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-warriors-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226381770552
  22. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-storm-v-tigers/story-e6frexnr-1226389323210
  23. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/lowdown-on-sea-eagles-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226398927468
  24. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-bulldogs-v-storm/story-e6frfgbo-1226406693318
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  26. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/north-queensland-cowboys-edge-melbourne-storm-20-16-at-aami-park/story-e6frfgbo-1226426081239
  27. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/melbourne-storm-slump-to-shock-loss-to-cellar-dwelling-parramatta-eels/story-e6frfgbo-1226431781776
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  30. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-storm-v-titans/story-e6frexnr-1226447681922
  31. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/follow-the-action-from-the-nrl-round-24-clash-between-brisbane-broncos-and-melbourne-storm/story-fnbh0omh-1226452795545
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  38. "Melbourne Storm 2012 Awards". March 2018.
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