The 2008 Melbourne Storm season was the 11th in the club's history. They competed in the NRL's 2008 Telstra Premiership and finished the regular season as minor premiers before reaching the grand final in which they were beaten by the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 40–0, the largest margin in grand final history. The minor premiership won by the Storm in 2008 was later stripped by the NRL in 2010 when it was revealed the club had been in breach of salary cap rules.
Despite losing seven games, Storm managed to finish in top spot on the NRL ladder for a third successive season. They had to wait until the final game to do it though, defeating South Sydney 42–4. A loss to the Warriors in the Qualifying final meant Storm had to do it the hard way and they did just that, defeating the Broncos and Sharks on the road. That tough road eventually caught up with Melbourne in the decider, which they lost to Manly.
Matt Geyer became the first Storm player to reach 250 games while Billy Slater followed on from Cameron Smith the previous year, earning the Golden boot award as the best player in the world.
Season summary World Club Challenge – With club captain Cameron Smith back home to be present at the birth of his first child, Melbourne go down 11–4 to Leeds Rhinos in the 2008 World Club Challenge at a rain-swept Elland Road. Ryan Hoffman scored the only try for Melbourne. Round 1 – Billy Slater scores a hat-trick as Melbourne begins their title defence with a 32–18 opening round victory over the New Zealand Warriors at the Telstra Dome. A twice tardy Melbourne are fined $10,000 by the NRL for failing to take the field on time. Round 2 – Melbourne forward Brett White and Cronulla forward Ben Ross are both sent off. Ross is sent off for striking Cooper Cronk with a late elbow, while White is sent off for punching Ross in the ensuing fight. White is later suspended for four matches. The 17–16 defeat ends the clubs 15-match winning streak at Olympic Park. Round 3 – Storm experience successive losses for the first time since 2006 as the Sydney Roosters upset Melbourne 10–6. 30 March – 2007 Dally M Rookie of the Year Israel Folau announces he is leaving Melbourne at the end of the 2008 season, signing a four-year deal with Brisbane Broncos reportedly worth $1.6m. 18 April – Coach Craig Bellamy signs a new contract extension, keeping him at the club until the end of the 2013 NRL season. Round 5 – A man of the match performance from Billy Slater, sees Melbourne defeat Manly 26–4 in the Grand Final rematch at Olympic Park. Round 6 – Wearing replica 1998 home jerseys, Melbourne stage a second half comeback to defeat Canberra Raiders 23–16, after trailing 16–4 at halftime. Aiden Tolman makes his NRL debut with Melbourne, becoming the first player in the club's history to graduate from playing in the NRL Under-20s competition, which was in its inaugural season. 28 May – Michael Crocker announces he will be leaving the club at the completion of the 2008 season, signing a three-year deal with Super League's Hull F.C. Round 10 – Missing nine players to State of Origin selection, as well as coach Craig Bellamy, St George Illawarra snap Melbourne's five-match winning streak. Round 11 – With club stalwart Matt Geyer playing his 250th first grade game, Melbourne outlast South Sydney Rabbitohs 15–10 at Gosford, as eight players back up from the midweek Origin fixture. Round 12 – Storm hold the Bulldogs scoreless in a 46–0 win, with Cameron Smith scoring 18 points. Round 13 – With Origin again ruining team selections, Melbourne missing ten players are held scoreless 18–0 against the Gold Coast Titans. It's the first time since the 2003 NRL finals that Melbourne are held scoreless. Round 16 – Again missing nine players (and coach Craig Bellamy), Melbourne struggle against Parramatta Eels, losing 24–22. Previously Parramatta had not defeated Melbourne since 2005. Round 17 – A dominant Greg Inglis leads Melbourne to a 30–14 win over Canberra at Olympic Park. The victory marking Craig Bellamy's 100th coaching victory at premiership level (from 147 games). Round 19 – A wild brawl in the 23rd minute saw Billy Slater and Adam Blair sin binned, while minutes later Jason Ryles was sent off by referee Gavin Badger as Melbourne defeated St George Illawarra 26–0. Round 20 – Michael Crocker experiences defeat for the first time in a Melbourne jersey, with the Warriors 8–6 win over the Storm. Crocker had played 34 games since joining the Storm without tasting defeat. 30 July – Cooper Cronk re-signs with the club for a further five seasons. 9 August – Greg Inglis is named at in the Australian Rugby League's Indigenous Team of the Century. 27 August – The Sydney Morning Herald reports that NRL CEO David Gallop held secret talks with Greg Inglis to ensure he did follow other players in 'defecting' to rugby union. Round 26 – Melbourne claim their third straight minor premiership, defeating South Sydney 42–4 in the final match of the regular season. Level on competition points with Manly, Melbourne took the J. J. Giltinan Shield with a superior points differential (+302 versus +290). In his final home game at Olympic Park, Matt Geyer scored the first try of the match and was honoured with a special presentation at full time. 9 September – Billy Slater and Cameron Smith finish in a tie for second for the Dally M Medal behind former Storm halfback Matt Orford. Slater's suspension for fighting in Round 19 costs him the victory. 10 September – Despite strong interest from European rugby union clubs, Greg Inglis commits his future to the Storm, signing a new four-year contract reportedly worth $1.8m. Semi Final – In a pulsating match in front of over 50,000 fans at Suncorp Stadium, Melbourne score a last minute try to win 16–14 over the Brisbane Broncos. Forwards Jeremy Smith and Cameron Smith are cited for a tackle on Sam Thaiday during the second half. Jeremy Smith later accepts a one-match suspension, while Cameron Smith pleads not guilty to a charge of unnecessary contact to the head or neck. In a lengthy NRL judiciary hearing, Cameron Smith is suspended for two-matches, ruling him out of the rest of the season. Preliminary Final – After Melbourne's comfortable 28–0 win over Cronulla, coach Craig Bellamy launches into a long-winded attack on the NRL, the NRL judiciary, bookmakers, and the media following the suspension of Cameron Smith. Bellamy's comments, endorsed by club CEO Brian Waldron, result in the NRL fining the club $50,000 with NRL CEO David Gallop accusing the pair of an "unprecedented, irrational, premeditated and defamatory attack on the integrity of the judiciary panel and the game's judiciary process." 30 September – The Men of League charity announce the game's greatest club players at their annual ball, with Cameron Smith named as Melbourne's club great.
Milestone games Round Player Milestone Round 3 Clifford Manua Storm debutRound 6 Aiden Tolman NRL debutRound 10 Brett Anderson Storm debut Dane Nielsen Storm debut Kevin Proctor NRL debut Liam Foran NRL debutRound 11 Matt Geyer 250th game Jeremy Smith 50th gameRound 13 Joe Tomane NRL debut Sam Joe NRL debutRound 16 Sinbad Kali NRL debutRound 17 Cooper Cronk 100th gameRound 18 Matt Geyer 250th Storm gameQualifying FinalAnthony Quinn150th gameJeff Lima50th gameSemi FinalIsrael Folau50th gamePreliminary FinalAdam Blair50th game
Jerseys Apparel supplier Reebok kept the same home jersey design as worn in previous seasons. The clash jersey changed to a mostly white jersey, featuring purple shoulder stripes and side panels together with sublimated purple thunderbolts, worn with purple shorts and white socks with two purple stripes. An alternate jersey was worn in the NRL's heritage round, with Melbourne wearing a replica uniform combination similar to their 1998 home colours.
In line with the celebrations of the centenary of rugby league in Australia, an additional patch was worn above the NRL logo.
Fixtures
Preseason
Date Opponent Venue Result Tries Goals Field goals 15 FebruaryTrial Manly-Warringah Sea EaglesBluetongue Stadium, Gosford5610B Slater (2), J Williams, J Tomane, C Smith, A Moore, I Folau, C Cronk, R Aitken, W ChambersS Turner (4), J Smith (2), L Foran, C Smith 22 FebruaryTrial HalifaxShay Stadium, Halifax, West Yorkshire2610B Slater (2), S Tagataese, I Folau, R Aitken, B MacDougallS Turner
Regular season Result by round
Matches Source: – Golden Point extra time (pen) – Penalty try Date Opponent Venue Result Tries Goals Field goals 17 March1 New Zealand WarriorsTelstra Dome, Melbourne3218B Slater (3), D Johnson, S TagataeseC Smith 5/6, S Turner 1/123 March2 Cronulla-Sutherland SharksOlympic Park, Melbourne1617R Aitken, I Folau, B WhiteC Smith 2/329 March3 Sydney Roosters Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney610B SlaterC Smith 1/14 April4 Brisbane Broncos Olympic Park, Melbourne288A Quinn (3), I Folau, R HoffmanC Smith 4/511 April5 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles Olympic Park, Melbourne264B Slater (2), R Hoffman, G Inglis, A QuinnC Smith 3/621 April6 Canberra Raiders Canberra Stadium, Canberra2316W Chambers, I Folau, B Slater, S TurnerC Smith 3/4C Cronk26 April7 North Queensland Cowboys Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville1210I Folau, G InglisC Smith 2/23 May8Bye12 May9 Newcastle Knights Olympic Park, Melbourne184I Folau (2), A QuinnC Smith 3/317 May10 St George Illawarra Dragons ANZ Stadium, Sydney1236W Chambers, S ManuJ Smith 1/2, S Turner 1/124 May11 South Sydney Rabbitohs Bluetongue Stadium, Gosford1510W Chambers, J SmithC Smith 3/4C Cronk31 May12 Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Olympic Park, Melbourne460M Geyer (2), M Crocker, C Cronk, I Folau, C Smith, J Smith, S TurnerC Smith 7/89 June13 Gold Coast Titans Skilled Stadium, Gold Coast01814 June14Bye21 June15 North Queensland Cowboys Olympic Park, Melbourne4820G Inglis (3), S Turner (2), I Folau, M Geyer, B Slater, J SmithC Smith 6/929 June16 Parramatta Eels Parramatta Stadium, Sydney2224S Manu (2), C Cronk, J TomaneS Turner 2/2, C Cronk 1/26 July17 Canberra Raiders Olympic Park, Melbourne3014G Inglis (2), S Manu, A Quinn, B Slater, S TurnerC Smith 3/614 July18 Wests Tigers Campbelltown Stadium, Sydney3018G Inglis (3), S Manu, B SlaterC Smith 5/521 July19 St George Illawarra Dragons Olympic Park, Melbourne260I Folau, M Geyer, J Lima, J Smith, S TurnerC Smith 3/527 July20 New Zealand Warriors Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland68S ManuC Smith 1/11 August21 Gold Coast Titans Olympic Park, Melbourne444I Folau (2), G Inglis (2), M Geyer, R Hoffman, A Quinn, J Smith, S TurnerC Smith 4/98 August22 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles Brookvale Oval, Sydney1610C Cronk, I Folau, M GeyerC Smith 2/315 August23 Sydney Roosters Olympic Park, Melbourne306A Quinn (2), C Cronk, B Slater, C SmithC Smith 5/625 August24 Penrith Panthers CUA Stadium, Sydney406G Inglis (3), S Turner (2), J Lima, A Quinn, C SmithC Smith 4/830 August25 Newcastle Knights EnergyAustralia Stadium, Newcastle1617I Folau, G Inglis, S ManuC Smith 2/37 September26 South Sydney Rabbitohs Olympic Park, Melbourne424B Slater (2), B Anderson, M Geyer, R Hoffman, A Quinn, C Smith, J SmithC Smith 4/7, M Geyer 1/1
Finals
Ladder
2008 Coaching Staff Head coach: Craig Bellamy Assistant coaches: Michael Maguire & Stephen Kearney Specialist coach: Matthew Johns Strength and conditioning Coach: Alex Corvo Football Manager: Frank Ponissi NRL Under 20s Coach: Brad Arthur Feeder Club Coach: Jamie Feeney (Central Coast Storm)
2008 squad List current as of 3 November 2021