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 Rank | 2nd | |||
| Play-off result | Premiers | |||
| 2012 record | Wins: 17; Draws: 0; Losses: 7 | |||
| Points scored | For: 579; Against: 361 | |||
| Team information | ||||
| CEO | Ron Gauci | |||
| Coach | Craig Bellamy | |||
| Captain |
| |||
| Stadium | AAMI Park – 30,050 | |||
| Top scorers | ||||
| Tries | Billy Slater (16) | |||
| Goals | Cameron Smith (78) | |||
| Points | Cameron Smith (164) | |||
| ||||
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.[1]
- 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. Ryan Hoffman was acting captain, with Cameron Smith on Origin duty.
- 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.[2]
- 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.[3] 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
| Round | Player | Milestone |
|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | Siosaia Vave | Storm debut |
| Round 2 | Jason Ryles | Storm debut |
| Round 5 | Bryan Norrie | 50th Storm game |
| Round 5 | Ryan Hinchcliffe | 100th game |
| Round 12 | Michael Greenfield | Storm debut |
| Round 12 | Will Chambers | 50th game |
| Round 12 | Todd Lowrie | 50th Storm game |
| Round 13 | Todd Lowrie | 150th NRL game |
| Round 14 | Craig Bellamy | 250th game coached |
| Round 18 | Anthony Quinn | 200th game |
| Round 19 | Cooper Cronk | 200th game |
| Round 20 | Richard Fa'aoso | Storm debut |
| Round 23 | Jesse Bromwich | 50th game |
| Round 23 | Mahe Fonua | NRL debut |
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.[4] 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.[5]
- Round 22 (vs the Penrith Panthers): the "Close the Gap" jersey.[6] "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.[7] The NRL began supporting this campaign with a "Close the Gap Round" in 2010.[8]
Statistics
Statistics source:[9] Statistics current following the Grand Final.
| Name | App | T | G | FG | Pts | Goal% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maurice Blair | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Jesse Bromwich | 27 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| Will Chambers | 18 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 52 | |
| Cooper Cronk | 26 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 41 | |
| Matt Duffie | 17 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 40 | |
| Richard Fa'aoso | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Mahe Fonua | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Michael Greenfield | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ryan Hinchcliffe | 27 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | |
| Ryan Hoffman | 27 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 44 | |
| Luke Kelly | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Rory Kostjasyn | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Jaiman Lowe | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Todd Lowrie | 23 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 16 | |
| Sika Manu | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | |
| Dane Nielsen | 22 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 28 | |
| Bryan Norrie | 25 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | |
| Justin O'Neill | 21 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 44 | |
| Kevin Proctor | 23 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 24 | |
| Anthony Quinn | 20 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | |
| Jason Ryles | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Billy Slater | 21 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 64 | |
| Cameron Smith | 25 | 2 | 78 | 0 | 164 | 69.03% (78/113) |
| Siosaia Vave | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Sisa Waqa | 11 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 28 | |
| Gareth Widdop | 26 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 40 | 80.00% (12/14) |
| 26 players used | - | 119 | 90 | 1 | 657 | 70.31% (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
Pre season
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 February | Trial 1 |  Easts Tigers | Langlands Park, Brisbane | Win | 36-8 | ||||
| 11 February | Trial 2 |  Canberra Raiders | Lavington Sports Ground, Albury | Loss | 18-27 | Hinchcliffe, Hoffman, Lowrie, McGahan | Kelly | 6,583 | |
| 19 February | Trial 3 |  Brisbane Broncos | North Hobart Oval, Hobart | Win | 34-30 | Slater (2), Cronk (2), Widdop, Fonua | Smith 5/6 | 11,752 |
Regular season
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 March | Round 1 | Canberra Raiders | Canberra Stadium, Canberra | Win | 19-24 | Slater (2), Cronk, O'Neill | Smith 4/4 | 7,862 | [10] |
| 11 March | Round 2 |  South Sydney Rabbitohs | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 24-10 | Nielsen (2), Slater (2), Duffie | Smith 2/4 | 15,872 | [11] |
| 18 March | Round 3 |  Gold Coast Titans | Skilled Park, Gold Coast | Win | 6-30 | Duffie (2), Slater (2), Manu, Quinn | Smith 2/5, Widdop 1/1 | 11,254 | [12] |
| 24 March | Round 4 |  Sydney Roosters | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 44-4 | Slater (2), Cronk (2), Nielsen, Proctor, Hoffman, Chambers | Smith 5/7, Widdop 1/1 | 11,897 | [13] |
| 31 March | Round 5 |  Newcastle Knights | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 34-22 | Widdop, Duffie, Hoffman, Slater, Chambers, Lowrie | Smith 5/6 | 11,369 | [14] |
| 8 April | Round 6 |  North Queensland Cowboys | Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville | Win | 18-42 | Duffie (2), Proctor (2), Chambers (2), Hinchcliffe, Ryles | Smith 5/8 | 20,206 | [15] |
| 14 April | Round 7 |  Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 12-6 | Hinchcliffe, Hoffman | Smith 2/2, Cronk 0/1 (FG) | 14,912 | [16] |
| 25 April | Round 8 |  New Zealand Warriors | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 32-14 | Chambers (3), Nielsen (2), O'Neill | Smith 4/6 | 20,333 | [17] |
| 5 May | Round 9 |  Penrith Panthers | Centrebet Stadium, Penrith | Win | 10-44 | O'Neill (3), Duffie, Cronk, Hoffman, Chambers, Hinchcliffe | Smith 5/7, Widdop 1/1 | 9,517 | [18] |
| 13 May | Round 10 |  Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Endeavour Field, Cronulla | Loss | 12-10 | Nielsen, Duffie | Smith 1/2 | 14,595 | [19] |
| 18–21 May | Round 11 | Bye | |||||||
| 25 May | Round 12 | Brisbane Broncos | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 34-10 | Lowrie (2), Slater (2), Chambers, O'Neill | Widdop 5/6 | 13,200 | [4] |
| 3 June | Round 13 | New Zealand Warriors | Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland | Win | 10-22 | Widdop, Lowe, Chambers, Smith | Smith 3/5 | 20,487 | [20] |
| 8 June | Round 14 | Wests Tigers | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Loss | 6-10 | Nielsen | Widdop 1/2 | 11,274 | [21] |
| 18 June | Round 15 |  Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Brookvale Oval, Manly | Win | 22-26 | Lowrie, Smith, Norrie, Duffie | Smith 5/5 | 12,106 | [22] |
| 24 June | Round 16 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Virgin Australia Stadium, Mackay | Loss | 20-4 | Quinn | Smith 0/1 | 11,876 | [23] |
| 29 June-2 July | Round 17 | Bye | |||||||
| 7 July | Round 18 | Canberra Raiders | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Loss | 12-40 | O'Neill (2) | Widdop 2/2 | 12,214 | [24] |
| 14 July | Round 19 | North Queensland Cowboys | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Loss | 16-20 | Duffie, Quinn, Widdop | Smith 2/3 | 10,688 | [25] |
| 21 July | Round 20 |  Parramatta Eels | Parramatta Stadium, Parramatta | Loss | 16-10 | Kostjasyn, Hoffman | Smith 1/2 | 9,029 | [26] |
| 27 July | Round 21 |  St George-Illawarra Dragons | WIN Stadium, Wollongong | Loss | 26-18 | Chambers, Hinchcliffe, Proctor | Smith 3/3 | 11,477 | [27] |
| 4 August | Round 22 | Penrith Panthers | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 46-6 | Cronk (2), O'Neill (2), Waqa (2), Bromwich, Manu | Smith 7/8 | 9,223 | [28] |
| 10 August | Round 23 | Gold Coast Titans | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 24-16 | Slater, Cronk, Hoffman, Widdop | Smith 4/4 | 9,108 | [29] |
| 17 August | Round 24 | Brisbane Broncos | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane | Win | 18-19 | Waqa (2), Cronk | Smith 3/3, Cronk 1/1 (FG) | 41,467 | [30] |
| 27 August | Round 25 | Cronulla Sharks | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 20-18 | Hoffman (2), Waqa, Chambers | Smith 2/4 | 12,847 | [31] |
| 1 September | Round 26 | Wests Tigers | Leichhardt Oval, Balmain | Win | 6-26 | Hoffman, Manu, Norrie, Proctor, Waqa | Smith 3/5 | 10,834 | [32] |
Finals
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Score | Tries | Goals | Attendance | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 September | Week 1 - Qualifying Final | South Sydney Rabbitohs | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 24-6 | Hoffman, Slater, Fonua, Waqa | Smith 4/5 | 19,750 | [33] |
| 21 September | Week 3 - Preliminary Final | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | AAMI Park, Melbourne | Win | 40-12 | Cronk (2), Slater (2), Chambers, Bromwich, Proctor | Smith 5/8, Widdop 1/1 | 25,543 | [34] |
| 30 September | Week 4 - Grand Final | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | ANZ Stadium, Sydney | Win | 4-14 | Hoffman, O'Neill, Slater | Smith 1/5 | 82,976 | [35] |
Ladder
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2012 Coaching Staff
NRL
- Head Coach: Craig Bellamy
- Assistant Coaches: David Kidwell & Kevin Walters
- Development Coach: Adam O'Brien
- Specialist Coach: Robbie Kearns
- Tackling Coach: John Donohue
- Performance Coach: Mick Martin
- Strength and Conditioning Coach: Alex Corvo
- Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coaches: Adrian Jiminez & Dan Di Pasqua
- Head Physiotherapist: Kieran Morgan
- Assistant Physiotherapist: Andrew Nawrocki
- Head Trainer: Craig Sultana
- General Manager Football Operations: Frank Ponissi
- Recruitment Manager: Paul Bunn[36]
2012 Squad
.svg.png.webp){kind=small}
2012 Premiership Team
| 2012 Premiership Team | Interchange | Coach | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Head coach
| |||||||
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 Match | City Vs Country | ANZAC Test | State of Origin 1 | State of Origin 2 | State of Origin 3 | VB Test[37] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
NRL All Stars | Australia | Queensland | Queensland | Queensland | Australia | ||
City | Australia | ||||||
Country | |||||||
Australia | Queensland | Queensland | Australia | ||||
Australia (C) | Queensland (C) | Queensland (C) | Queensland (C) | Australia (C) | |||
New Zealand | New Zealand | ||||||
Queensland | |||||||
New Zealand |
Awards
Trophy CabinetMelbourne Storm Awards NightHeld at Melbourne Convention Centre on Friday 5 October 2012. [38][36]
|
Dally M Awards NightOn 4 August 2012, the 2012 Dally M Awards were held.[40]
RLIF Awards NightOn 17 October 2012 the RLIF held their annual award ceremony[41] and presented a number of awards to Melbourne Storm personnel including naming Cameron Smith the 'International Rugby League Player of the Year'.
Additional Awards
|
Notes
- 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
- "Billy Slater is the best Buzz has ever seen | Herald Sun". Archived from the original on 2012-04-07.
- Gould, Russell (August 2012). "Bellamy: Speculation not to blame". News.com.au — Australia's Leading News Site.
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/storm-proud-of-hometown-boy-mahe-fonua/story-e6frfgbo-1226447936834
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-strom-v-broncos/story-e6frfgbo-1226367104426
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-12-30. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-12-30. Retrieved 2012-08-31.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - "Close the Gap | Oxfam Australia". 3 August 2011.
- "Rugby League helps Close the Gap | Oxfam Australia". 3 August 2011.
- http://stats.rleague.com/rl/teams/melbourne/melbourne2012_sc.html
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/nrl-round-1-raiders-v-storm/story-e6frfgbo-1226288130780
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/lowdown-on-storm-rabbitohs-clash/story-e6frfgbo-1226295194073
- "Melbourne Storm blow Gold Coast Titans away 30-6 | Herald Sun". Archived from the original on 2012-04-07.
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/melbourne-storm-smashes-sydney-roosters-44-4-at-aami-park/story-e6frfgbx-1226309563419
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/lowdown-on-storm-knights-clash/story-e6frexnr-1226314640820
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/round-6-cowboys-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226321506553
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/melbourne-storm-make-it-sevens-wins-on-the-trot-with-win-over-the-bulldogs/story-e6frexnr-1226326539945
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/lowdown-on-storm-warriors-clash/story-e6frfgbo-1226337980809
- "Melbourne Storm demolish the Penrith Panthers | thetelegraph.com.au". Archived from the original on 2012-06-16.
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-sharks-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226354046436
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-warriors-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226381770552
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-storm-v-tigers/story-e6frexnr-1226389323210
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/lowdown-on-sea-eagles-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226398927468
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-bulldogs-v-storm/story-e6frfgbo-1226406693318
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/raiders-thrash-storm-40-12-at-aami-park/story-e6frfgbo-1226419816766
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/north-queensland-cowboys-edge-melbourne-storm-20-16-at-aami-park/story-e6frfgbo-1226426081239
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/melbourne-storm-slump-to-shock-loss-to-cellar-dwelling-parramatta-eels/story-e6frfgbo-1226431781776
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-dragons-v-storm/story-e6frexnr-1226436862761
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-storm-v-panthers/story-e6frexnr-1226442431101
- http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-storm-v-titans/story-e6frexnr-1226447681922
- 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
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/follow-the-action-from-the-melbourne-storm-and-cronulla-sharks-clash-from-aami-park/story-fnbho2px-1226459213016
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/fwests-tigers-crash-out-of-the-nrl-competition-after-big-loss-to-the-melbourne-storm/story-fnbho3jx-1226462996819
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/follow-the-action-of-the-nrl-qualifying-final-between-melbourne-storm-and-south-sydney-rabbitohs/story-e6frfgbo-1226468103796
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/the-lowdown-storm-v-sea-eagles/story-e6frfgbo-1226478963555
- "Melbourne Storm beat Canterbury Bulldogs in 2012 NRL grand final | thetelegraph.com.au". Archived from the original on 2012-09-30.
- Official Melbourne Storm Yearbook 2012. Melbourne Storm. pp. 26–27.
- "Kiwis' clash key to Sheens' Test future - NRL.com". www.nrl.com. Archived from the original on 2012-10-05.
- "Melbourne Storm 2012 Awards". March 2018.
- "Smith secures back-to-back Player of the Year awards". melbournestorm.com.au. Archived from the original on 17 November 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
- "Ben Barba wins the 2012 Dally M Medal - NRL.com". www.nrl.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-07.
- http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/cameron-smith-international-player-of-the-year/story-e6frfgbo-1226497959173
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