2005 Melbourne Storm season

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2005 Melbourne Storm season
NRL Rank6th
Play-off resultSemi-final Loss
2005 recordWins: 13; draws: 0; losses: 11
Points scoredFor: 640; against: 462
Team information
CEOBrian Waldron
CoachCraig Bellamy
Captain
StadiumOlympic Park
Avg. attendance8,898
High attendance12,149 (Round 4)
Top scorers
TriesBilly Slater (20)
GoalsMatt Orford (63)
PointsMatt Orford (172)
← 2004 List of seasons 2006 →

The 2005 Melbourne Storm season was the 8th in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2005 Telstra Premiership, finishing the regular season 6th out of 15 teams and making the finals. The season began with two big wins over the Knights and Dragons, each by more than 30 points. The form line followed a similar path to the previous season though as the team struggled to string consecutive wins together and hovered around the lower part of the eight for much of the season before ultimately finishing sixth once again. Future star Greg Inglis made his debut in Round 6. Storm finished the season with the second best defence in the competition and again went to Suncorp Stadium in Week One of the finals, producing the same result to defeat the Broncos. However for the third straight season the side was unable to progress past the semi-final stage, losing to the Cowboys. At the end of the season, Storm legends Robbie Kearns and Matt Geyer were inducted as inaugural life members of the Club.[1]

Season Summary[edit]

  • 22 February – The Supreme Court of New South Wales finds Melbourne and former players Stephen Kearney and Marcus Bai responsible for the spear tackle that ended the career of Jarrod McCracken in the 2000 NRL season.[2][3]
  • Round 1 – Melbourne open their 2005 season at home with a resounding 48-10 win over Newcastle Knights. Leading 22-0 at half time, the Storm extend their lead on the back of a Billy Slater hat-trick. Former Melbourne winger Dustin Cooper scores a double for the visitors. Brett White makes his NRL debut.
  • Round 4 – Storm thrash Brisbane Broncos 50-4 to inflict the heaviest defeat in the Broncos' 18-year history. The 50 point score against Brisbane also bested the 48 points scored by Melbourne in 1999.[4] Before the game, the club honours 1999 premiership players Glenn Lazarus and Tawera Nikau; by renaming the eastern (Nikau) and western (Lazarus) grandstands.[5]
  • 13 April – Melbourne is found to have breached the competition's salary cap in 2004 and are fined $120,000.[6]
  • Round 6 – Greg Inglis makes his NRL debut at just 18 years and 91 days, scoring a try.
  • 30 April – The Victoria State Government confirms that the Olympic Park precinct will undergo a $100m redevelopment, with a new stadium scheduled for completion in 2008.[6][7]
  • 2 May – Controversy over "grapple tackles" erupts with Cronulla prop claiming he was choked in a two-man Storm tackle.[6]
  • Round 12 – Melbourne breaks a three-game losing streak at home by beating St George Illawarra by 24–16.[8]
  • Round 13 – Melbourne win their first game at Leichhardt Oval since 1998, coming from 8-0 down at half time to win 30-14.[6]
  • Round 14 – Missing Origin players, Melbourne are awarded a controversial penalty try to Cooper Cronk early in the second half. It wasn't enough for the victory, as the New Zealand Warriors regained the Michael Moore Trophy win a 24-16 victory.
  • Round 16 – Melbourne return to form thrashing South Sydney Rabbitohs 48-6, with Billy Slater scoring another hat-trick.[6]
  • Round 17 – Melbourne win just their second game in 13 attempts against 2004 premiers Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, with Slater and Inglis both scoring two tries in a 33-6 win.
  • Round 18 – In front of the lowest attended Olympic Park home game in club history (6,063), Melbourne hold Canberra Raiders scoreless for the first time.
  • 20 July – After weeks of speculation, it's announced halfback Matt Orford has signed a four-year contract with Manly worth nearly $2m.[6]
  • Round 23 – Melbourne celebrate the 100th game at Olympic Park by regaining the Michael Moore Trophy, winning 22-10 over the Warriors.[6]
  • Round 25 – In his last home game for the club, Robbie Kearns is chaired from the field following a 34-22 win over Wests Tigers. Coach Craig Bellamy saying that Kearns "without a doubt is the heart and soul of this club."[6]
  • Round 26 – A penalty try awarded against Billy Slater in a 30-24 loss to the North Queensland Cowboys was part of a controversial night in Townsville with Cowboys forward Carl Webb suspended for punching Ryan Hoffman allegedly in retaliation for a "grapple tackle." The loss drops Melbourne to sixth on the ladder at the end of the regular season, behind the Cowboys in fourth.
  • Qualifying Final – Travelling to Brisbane for the second year in a row, Melbourne hang on for a 24-18 win over the Broncos. Injuries to Robbie Kearns (shoulder) and Billy Slater (ankle) complicating things for the club for the remainder of the finals.
  • 12 September – Melbourne and North Queensland spark a war of words over the "grapple tackle", with both clubs accusing the other of using the technique ahead of the semi-final between the teams. Melbourne later release video of 20 incidents in which they claim Cowboys players were putting opponents in headlocks.[6]
  • Semi-final – For the third year in a row, Melbourne are eliminated in the second week of the NRL finals, this time going down 24-16 to the Cowboys at Aussie Stadium. Down 16-0 at half time, Melbourne were gifted a try by referee Paul Simpkins who failed to consult the video referee when centre Steven Bell lost control of the ball while attempting to score. A frantic final flurry almost saw Melbourne level the scores led by fill-in captain Matt Orford.

Milestone games[edit]

Round Player Milestone
Round 1 Dennis Scott Storm debut
Round 1 Brett White NRL debut
Round 1 Cameron Smith 50th game
Round 2 Billy Slater 50th game
Round 3 Ian Donnelly Storm debut
Round 4 Jamie McDonald Storm debut
Round 4 Matt Geyer 500 points
Round 5 Alex Chan 50th game
Round 6 Greg Inglis NRL debut
Round 7 Jamie Feeney Storm debut
Round 11 Josh Graham NRL debut
Round 12 Dallas Johnson 50th game
Round 14 Tevita Metuisela Storm debut
Round 18 Glen Turner 50th game
Round 20 Steven Bell 100th game
Round 21 Ryan Hoffman 50th game

Jerseys[edit]

For the 2005 season, Melbourne signed a new apparel contract with Reebok. The home jersey remained largely unchanged from the 2001-02 design, but now with a simple navy blue T-shirt style collar. This meant the home jersey did not feature gold for the first time in team history.

A new white clash jersey was designed, featuring a large gold thunderbolt with purple block shadowing, which was partially obscured by the jersey advertiser Adecco. The clash jersey was worn with different navy blue shorts featuring the thunderbolt design on the right.

The clash jersey was worn on seven occasions during the regular season (rounds 5, 13, 14, 19, 21, 22, 26); with Melbourne only winning on one occasion against Wests Tigers. Both finals games were also played with Melbourne wearing the clash jersey.

Fixtures[edit]

Pre Season[edit]

Date Rd Opponent Venue Result Mel. Opp. Tries Goals Field goals Ref
5 February Trial Central Comets Browne Park, Rockhampton Won 58 18 J Webster (2), M Brentnall (2), J Tatupu, R Shortland, T Metuisela, A Kaufusi, P Robinson G Inglis (7) [9]
19 February Trial Brisbane Broncos Carrara Stadium, Gold Coast Won 24 10 S Turner, S Bell, J Smith, B Slater, G Inglis S Turner (2) [10]
25 February Trial North Queensland Cowboys Barlow Park, Cairns Won 30 18 C Smith, R Kearns, B Slater, R Hoffman, J Webster M Orford (3), C Smith, G Inglis [11][12]

Regular season[edit]

Source:[13]

Date Rd Opponent Venue Result Mel. Opp. Tries Goals Field goals Ref
13 March 1 Newcastle Knights Olympic Park, Melbourne Won 48 10 B Slater (3), M Orford (2), C Cronk, R Hoffman, J Webster, B White M Orford 4/5, M Geyer 2/2, C Smith 0/2 [14]
19 March 2 St George Illawarra Dragons WIN Stadium, Wollongong Won 46 12 S Bell (2), M Orford (2), R Kearns, M King, B Slater, C Smith M Orford 4/5, C Smith 3/4 [15]
27 March 3 Manly Warringah Sea Eagles Brookvale Oval, Sydney Lost 18 25 S Bell, C Cronk, B Slater C Smith 3/3 [16]
2 April 4 Brisbane Broncos Olympic Park, Melbourne Won 50 4 M Geyer (2), M King (2), B Slater (2), J Webster (2), S Bell, R Hoffman M Orford 4/7, C Smith 1/3 [17]
8 April 5 Penrith Panthers CUA Stadium, Sydney Lost 16 36 S Bell, A Chan, M King M Orford 1/3, C Smith 1/1 [18]
16 April 6 Parramatta Eels Olympic Park, Melbourne Lost 14 26 G Inglis, M King, M Orford C Smith 1/2, M Orford 0/1 [19]
24 April 7 Canberra Raiders Canberra Stadium, Canberra Won 46 10 M King (2), B Slater (2), M Geyer, S Hill, R Hoffman, J Webster M Orford 4/5, C Smith 3/4 [20]
30 April 8 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks Olympic Park, Melbourne Lost 10 30 P Robinson, D Scott M Orford 1/2 [21]
6 May 9 Bye
14 May 10 South Sydney Rabbitohs Aussie Stadium, Sydney Won 38 12 G Turner (2), S Bell, A Chan, M Geyer, G Inglis, D Kidwell, M Orford C Smith 3/8 [22]
21 May 11 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Olympic Park, Melbourne Lost 16 26 J Graham, R Kearns, D Kidwell M Orford 2/3 [23]
29 May 12 St George Illawarra Dragons Olympic Park, Melbourne Won 24 16 M King, M Orford, C Smith, G Turner M Orford 3/4, C Smith 1/1 [24]
5 June 13 Wests Tigers Leichhardt Oval, Sydney Won 30 14 B Slater (2), S Bell, M Geyer, J Webster M Orford 3/3, C Smith 2/2 [25]
12 June 14 New Zealand Warriors Ericsson Stadium, Auckland Lost 16 24 M Geyer (2), C Cronk M Orford 2/4 [26]
18 June 15 Penrith Panthers Olympic Park, Melbourne Lost 14 28 S Bell, M Geyer, M King M Orford 1/3 [27]
25 June 16 South Sydney Rabbitohs Olympic Park, Melbourne Won 48 6 B Slater (3), M Geyer (2), S Bell, D Kidwell, G Turner, J Webster M Orford 4/7, C Smith 2/2 [28]
2 July 17 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Sydney Showground, Sydney Won 33 6 G Inglis (2), B Slater (2), G Turner M Orford 6/7 M Orford [29]
9 July 18 Canberra Raiders Olympic Park, Melbourne Won 20 0 J Webster (2), S Bell M Orford 2/3, C Smith 2/2 [30]
17 July 19 Brisbane Broncos Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Lost 15 28 D Johnson, M Orford M Orford 3/4 M Orford [31]
24 July 20 Sydney Roosters Olympic Park, Melbourne Won 24 10 D Johnson, D Kidwell, M King, B Slater M Orford 3/4, C Smith 1/1 [32]
30 July 21 Newcastle Knights EnergyAustralia Stadium, Newcastle Lost 18 37 C Cronk, D Scott, B Slater M Orford 2/2, C Smith 1/1 [33]
6 August 22 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks Toyota Park, Sydney Lost 16 40 S Bell, A Kaufusi, J Webster M Orford 1/1, C Smith 1/2 [34]
13 August 23 New Zealand Warriors Olympic Park, Melbourne Won 22 10 M King (2), M Orford, B Slater M Orford 3/4 [35]
20 August 24 Bye
27 August 25 Wests Tigers Olympic Park, Melbourne Won 34 22 S Bell, M Geyer, G Inglis, A Kaufusi, M Orford, C Smith M Orford 5/5, C Smith 0/1 [36]
3 September 26 North Queensland Cowboys Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville Lost 24 30 S Bell, R Hoffman, G Inglis, D Scott M Orford 2/2, C Smith 4/5 [37]

Finals[edit]

Ladder[edit]

Main article: 2005 NRL season
2005 NRL season
Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
1 Parramatta Eels 24 16 0 8 2 704 456 +248 36
2 St George Illawarra Dragons 24 16 0 8 2 655 510 +145 36
3 Brisbane Broncos 24 15 0 9 2 597 484 +113 34
4 Wests Tigers (P) 24 14 0 10 2 676 575 +101 32
5 North Queensland Cowboys 24 14 0 10 2 639 563 +76 32
6 Melbourne Storm 24 13 0 11 2 640 462 +178 30
7 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 24 12 0 12 2 550 564 -14 28
8 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 24 12 0 12 2 554 632 -78 28
9 Sydney Roosters 24 11 0 13 2 488 487 +1 26
10 Penrith Panthers 24 11 0 13 2 554 554 0 26
11 New Zealand Warriors 24 10 0 14 2 515 528 -13 24
12 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 24 9 1 14 2 472 670 -198 23
13 South Sydney Rabbitohs 24 9 1 14 2 482 700 -218 23
14 Canberra Raiders 24 9 0 15 2 465 606 -141 22
15 Newcastle Knights 24 8 0 16 2 467 667 -200 20

2005 Coaching Staff[edit]

2005 squad[edit]

List current as of 28 September 2021

Further information: List of Melbourne Storm players
Cap [a] Nat. Player name Position First Storm Game Previous First Grade RL club [b]
6 Australia Scott Hill FE, LK 1998 Australia Hunter Mariners
10 Australia Robbie Kearns PR 1998 Australia Perth Reds
18 Australia Matt Geyer WG 1998 Australia Perth Reds
37 New Zealand Glen Turner SR 2000 Australia Melbourne Storm
38 New Zealand Peter Robinson SR 2000 Australia Melbourne Storm
43 Australia Matt Orford HB 2001 Australia Northern Eagles
44 Australia Steven Bell CE 2001 Australia Melbourne Storm
55 Australia Cameron Smith (c) HK 2002 Australia Melbourne Storm
58 Australia Billy Slater FB 2003 Australia Melbourne Storm
59 New Zealand David Kidwell SR, LK 2003 Australia Sydney Roosters
60 Australia Dallas Johnson SR, LK 2003 Australia Melbourne Storm
61 New Zealand Jake Webster WG 2003 Australia Melbourne Storm
62 Australia Ryan Hoffman SR, LK 2003 Australia Melbourne Storm
64 New Zealand Robert Tanielu PR 2003 Australia Brisbane Broncos
67 Australia Nathan Friend HK 2003 Australia Brisbane Broncos
68 Australia Antonio Kaufusi PR 2003 Australia Melbourne Storm
69 Australia Matt King CE 2003 Australia Melbourne Storm
71 Australia Alex Chan PR 2004 Australia Parramatta Eels
72 Australia Steve Turner FB, WG 2004 Australia Penrith Panthers
73 Australia Cooper Cronk HB 2004 Australia Melbourne Storm
74 New Zealand Jeremy Smith LK 2004 Australia Melbourne Storm
75 Australia Dennis Scott SR 2005 Australia Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
76 Australia Brett White PR 2005 Australia Melbourne Storm
77 Australia Ian Donnelly PR 2005 Australia Manly Sea Eagles
78 Australia Jamie McDonald PR 2005 Australia North Queensland Cowboys
79 Australia Greg Inglis CE, FB 2005 Australia Melbourne Storm
80 Australia Jamie Feeney SR, LK 2005 Australia Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
81 Australia Josh Graham CE 2005 Australia Melbourne Storm
82 Australia Tevita Metuisela PR 2005 Australia Sydney Roosters
- New Zealand Ryan Shortland FE, CE Yet to Debut Australia Melbourne Storm
- Australia Scott Anderson PR Yet to Debut Australia Melbourne Storm
- Samoa Sam Tagataese SR, PR Yet to Debut Australia Melbourne Storm
- New Zealand Jeremiah Pai FE, HB Yet to Debut New Zealand New Zealand Warriors[c]

Player movements[edit]

Representative honours[edit]

This table lists all players who have played a representative match in 2005.

Further information: List of Melbourne Storm representatives
Player 2005 ANZAC Test City vs Country Origin State of Origin 1 State of Origin 2 State of Origin 3 Tri-Nations[d]
Scott Hill – Country – – – –
David Kidwell New Zealand – – – – New Zealand
Matt King – Country New South Wales New South Wales New South Wales Australia
Billy Slater – – Queensland Queensland – –
Cameron Smith – – Queensland Queensland Queensland –
Jake Webster – – – – – New Zealand

Statistics[edit]

This table contains playing statistics for all Melbourne Storm players to have played in the 2005 NRL season.

Further information: List of Melbourne Storm records
Name Appearances Tries Goals Field goals Points
Steven Bell 26 14 0 0 56
Alex Chan 14 2 0 0 8
Cooper Cronk 20 4 0 0 16
Ian Donnelly 11 0 0 0 0
Jamie Feeney 12 0 0 0 0
Nathan Friend 3 0 0 0 0
Matt Geyer 26 11 2 0 48
Josh Graham 1 4 0 0 4
Scott Hill 18 1 0 0 4
Ryan Hoffman 23 4 0 0 16
Greg Inglis 13 7 0 0 28
Dallas Johnson 24 2 0 0 8
Antonio Kaufusi 11 2 0 0 8
Robbie Kearns 25 2 0 0 8
David Kidwell 25 4 0 0 16
Matt King 23 14 0 0 56
Jamie McDonald 2 0 0 0 0
Tevita Metuisela 3 0 0 0 0
Matt Orford 26 11 63 2 172
Peter Robinson 2 1 0 0 4
Dennis Scott 19 3 0 0 12
Billy Slater 21 20 0 0 80
Cameron Smith 23 3 30 0 72
Glen Turner 23 5 0 0 20
Jake Webster 24 10 0 0 40
Brett White 24 1 0 0 4
26 players used — 122 95 2 680

Scorers[edit]

Most points in a game: 16 points

  • Round 1 – Matt Orford (2 tries, 4 goals) vs Newcastle Knights
  • Round 2 – Matt Orford (2 tries, 4 goals) vs St George Illawarra Dragons

Most tries in a game: 3

  • Round 1 – Billy Slater vs Newcastle Knights
  • Round 16 – Billy Slater vs South Sydney Rabbitohs

Winning games[edit]

Highest score in a winning game: 50 points

  • Round 4 vs Brisbane Broncos

Lowest score in a winning game: 20 points

  • Round 18 vs Canberra Raiders

Greatest winning margin: 46 points

  • Round 4 vs Brisbane Broncos

Greatest number of games won consecutively: 3

  • Round 16 - Round 18

Losing games[edit]

Highest score in a losing game: 24 points

  • Round 26 vs North Queensland Cowboys

Lowest score in a losing game: 10 points

  • Round 8 vs Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks

Greatest losing margin: 24 points

  • Round 22 vs Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks

Greatest number of games lost consecutively: 2

  • Round 5 - Round 6
  • Round 14 - Round 15
  • Round 21 - Round 22

Feeder Teams[edit]

Under a new affiliation agreement, Melbourne split their reserve players between two feeder clubs during the 2005 season. The agreement with Norths Devils continued for an eighth season, with players who were dual-registered in Queensland travelling to Brisbane each week to play with in the Queensland Cup. Melbourne also formed an affiliation with foundation New South Wales Rugby League club North Sydney Bears for some players to play in the NSWRL Premier League.

In a repeat of the 2004 season, the Devils finished second on the ladder, but were bundled out of the finals in straight sets.

Main article: 2005 Queensland Cup

Coached by Gary Freeman, the Bears finished tenth and missed the finals, with Alex Chan, Ian Donnelly, Jamie Feeney and Tevita Metuisela attracting praise from Freeman for their efforts.[44]

2005 Queensland Cup
Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
2 Norths Devils 20 15 1 4 2 719 454 +265 31
2005 NSWRL Premier League
Pos Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
10 North Sydney Bears 24 9 1 14 2 604 686 -82 23

Awards and honours[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Players are listed with the cap number as they appear on the Melbourne Storm honour board. Additional squad members do not have a cap number.
  2. ^ 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.
  3. ^ Signed from Parramatta Eels, last played NRL for Warriors in 2002.
  4. ^ Including additional test matches against France

References[edit]

  1. ^ "History Melbourne Storm". melbournestorm.com.au. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
  2. ^ "McCracken wins fight for spear tackle damages". smh.com.au. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  3. ^ "Mccracken v Melbourne Storm Rugby League Football Club and 2 Ors [2005] NSWSC 107 (22 February 2005)". AustLII. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  4. ^ de Kroo, Karl (3 April 2005). "An awesome Storm". Herald-Sun. Melbourne, Victoria: Nationwide News Pty Ltd. p. 73.
  5. ^ "Storm stands to honour ex-players". theage.com.au. Fairfax Media. 30 March 2005. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Middleton, David. 2005 Official Rugby League Annual. Surrey Hills: News Magazines.
  7. ^ "New stadium for Olympic Park". theage.com.au. Fairfax Media. 30 April 2005. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  8. ^ Zander, Joel (29 May 2005). "Storm back on song at home". ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation). Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  9. ^ "FIRST TRIAL GAME, DONE AND DUSTED". melbournestorm.com.au. 7 February 2005. Archived from the original on 9 February 2005. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  10. ^ Ricketts, Steve (20 February 2005). "He's our No.1...for now - Hodges starts at fullback for beaten Broncos". The Courier-Mail. Brisbane, Queensland: Nationwide News Pty Ltd. p. 108.
  11. ^ "Storm swamp Cowboys in Cairns". AAP Sports News Wire. 25 February 2005.
  12. ^ Greenwood, Emma (26 February 2005). "Cowboys collapse under Storm surge". The Cairns Post. Cairns, Queensland: Nationwide News Pty Ltd. p. 168.
  13. ^ "Rugby League Tables - Melbourne". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  14. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 1". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  15. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 2". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  16. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 3". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  17. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 4". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  18. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 5". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  19. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 6". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  20. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 7". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  21. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 8". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  22. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 10". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  23. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 11". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  24. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 12". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  25. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 13". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  26. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 14". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  27. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 15". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  28. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 16". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  29. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 17". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  30. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 18". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  31. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 19". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  32. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 20". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  33. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 21". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  34. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 22". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  35. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 23". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  36. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 25". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  37. ^ "NRL 2005 - Round 26". Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  38. ^ NRL 2005 - Qualifying Final. Rugby League Project. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  39. ^ NRL 2005 - Semi-final. Rugby League Project. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  40. ^ "Coach Profile". melbournestorm.com.au. Archived from the original on 15 June 2005. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
  41. ^ Brian Smith (2 July 2014). "SMITHY: A Sharp mind and a fine coach". theroar.com.au. Retrieved 14 March 2022. Showing how highly rated he was in the wider coaching community, Melbourne Storm snapped him up for two seasons as an assistant immediately after the five year stint on Sydney's north shore.
  42. ^ "2005 Melbourne Point Scorers". afltables.com. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  43. ^ "Melbourne Storm - NRL 2005". rugbyleagueproject.org. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  44. ^ Little, Steve (28 August 2005). "BEARS PLAY OUT SEASON IN FRONT OF BIG LOCAL CROWD". North Sydney Bears. Archived from the original on 3 November 2005. Retrieved 28 September 2021. "Thanks for the effort you've put in this year boys. I hope you enjoyed the year and learnt a lot. I hope it gave you a good grounding for the future. Thanks to Alex Chan, Ian Donnelly, Jamie Feeney and Tevita Metuisela for coming back from Melbourne to do what is required.
  45. ^ "NRL Honour Board". melbournestorm.com.au. Melbourne Storm. Archived from the original on 28 September 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  46. ^ "STORMY, STORMY NIGHT". melbournestorm.com.au. Archived from the original on 21 November 2005. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
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