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Storm hopeful injured key forward can play finals role
Melissa Woods, AAP • September 3rd, 2025 5:05 pm
Melbourne are hoping Shawn Blore (right) can play a key part in the side's NRL premiership push | Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP
With Jahrome Hughes blowing out the cobwebs against Brisbane before the NRL finals, Melbourne are hoping Shawn Blore can also play a part in their premiership push after the back-rower fractured his larynx.
Star halfback Hughes will play his first match since suffering a shoulder injury six weeks ago, with the Storm looking to rebound from an ugly 30-point loss to the Sydney Roosters.
While Melbourne are looking to make amends for that performance, they will finish second win or lose, as Broncos hunt a top-four finals spot.
Jahrome Hughes will return for the Storm after missing six weeks with a shoulder injury | Photo: Dan Himbrechts/AAP
The Storm have only lost once in the past 18 clashes between the sides, with former skipper Cameron Smith revealing this week that coach Craig Bellamy always "circled Broncos matches on the calendar".
Bellamy insisted there was no personal motivation and said their battles weren't as one-sided as the record suggests.
"That record, it doesn't seem like that, it always seems to be tough games, reasonably close games that just go down to the wire, and sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you don't," Bellamy said.
Blore was ruled out of Thursday night's Suncorp Stadium clash, but Bellamy said the prognosis wasn't as bad as first thought, and they were now hopeful he would return through their finals campaign.
Melbourne received better-than-expected news about the injury to Shawn Blore's larynx | Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP
"He got a knock to his larynx and he's actually split it," the coach said.
"But we had a little bit of good news earlier in the week as they thought they'd have to operate, you know, like a major operation, but they don't, although I think he's had minor surgery.
"I'm not quite sure how long before he'll be back or if he'll be back, and I'm not quite sure the medical people know either - it's just a little bit of a suck-it-and-see thing and just see how he goes.
"But certainly it was better news earlier in the week than we thought he'd be out for the rest of the season."
Bellamy said Hughes could have played last round, but the club wanted to take a cautious approach with the Dally M Medallist.
"It will be good to get him back in and have a run," he said of the No.7.
"After six weeks off, it doesn't matter how experienced you are, it's hard to come back in a final, so I think tomorrow night's run's going to be really beneficial for him and hopefully for us."
Bellamy said a review of their performance against the Roosters identified a lack of effort in defence, which he hoped they would rectify against Brisbane.
The Storm have also bolstered their squad, bringing in Xavier Coates, Nick Meaney, Eli Katoa and Josh King, who were all rested last round.
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