There's a Storm brewing
The football season is upon us and today saw the season launch of my rugby league team the Melbourne Storm. Crap website and even worse content (inconsistent news updates) but they're working on getting a better one for this season. They used to have such a good one and IIRC they won the best australian sports team website in 1999/2000. Not 100% sure on that but they definitely were in the running.
Anyway, the season launch was this afternoon at Federation Square and we had the legendary raging bull himself, Gorden Tallis, the former Brisbane Broncos and Queensland Maroons captain. The newly appointed NRL board member has been quite vocal in his criticism towards Melbourne media's lack of support for their one and only NRL team. Not really surprising since Melbourne is the center of Australian Football or as I prefer to call it, aerial handball since all they do is punch a ball around in a cricket field and if you miss a kick at goal, you get one point. Retarded, I know but I'm not here to bash that sorry excuse for a hybrid football game... oops, too late ^^;;
Back to Tallis, the Storm have always had strong links with Queensland (having a feeder team from Brisbane North) and the Broncos through the many players and coaches both teams have shared over the years, but it was still surprising and unexpected to have Tallis as the number 1 Queensland ticket holder for the Storm. The actual number 1 ticket holder of course, as has been since the beginning, being Ian "Molly" Meldrum, the king of Australian entertainment.
The club unfortunately may have lost two of its best rookies for the season before it even begins, one of which is definitely out while the other has to wait for further scans. They also have lost two senior players for the month, the loss of whom have left the club with a rather slim forward pack until at least round four. Luckily, the first game of the season is against the Newcastle Knights who while boosted by the return of their halfback, Andrew Johns, arguably the best rugby league player in the world, have lost up to nine of their top level players.
In an interesting twist of fate, Storm's bearded cult hero and best and most improved forward of 2003-2004 Kirk Reynoldson and promising but temperamental 2004 rookie Dustin Cooper, joined the Knights at the end of last season, so this year they're starting their season back at Olympic Park albeit in blue and red instead of purple and blue. Hopefully they won't do a Mitchell Sargent!!
At Mitchell Sargent's first game back in Melbourne after joining the North Queensland Cowboys, he forgot that he's no longer a Storm and went to sit at the Melbourne bench before the entire Storm bench kicked him out laughing and sent him packing back to his own bench! :D LOL
So, first Storm game of the season is this Sunday at 2:30 pm and I just got my membership card for 2005. They're having a BBQ for the fans next to the stadium before the game so you'll spot me there in my Storm gear and I heard it's going to be a warm (hot, really) 30ºC.
Anyway, the season launch was this afternoon at Federation Square and we had the legendary raging bull himself, Gorden Tallis, the former Brisbane Broncos and Queensland Maroons captain. The newly appointed NRL board member has been quite vocal in his criticism towards Melbourne media's lack of support for their one and only NRL team. Not really surprising since Melbourne is the center of Australian Football or as I prefer to call it, aerial handball since all they do is punch a ball around in a cricket field and if you miss a kick at goal, you get one point. Retarded, I know but I'm not here to bash that sorry excuse for a hybrid football game... oops, too late ^^;;
Back to Tallis, the Storm have always had strong links with Queensland (having a feeder team from Brisbane North) and the Broncos through the many players and coaches both teams have shared over the years, but it was still surprising and unexpected to have Tallis as the number 1 Queensland ticket holder for the Storm. The actual number 1 ticket holder of course, as has been since the beginning, being Ian "Molly" Meldrum, the king of Australian entertainment.
The club unfortunately may have lost two of its best rookies for the season before it even begins, one of which is definitely out while the other has to wait for further scans. They also have lost two senior players for the month, the loss of whom have left the club with a rather slim forward pack until at least round four. Luckily, the first game of the season is against the Newcastle Knights who while boosted by the return of their halfback, Andrew Johns, arguably the best rugby league player in the world, have lost up to nine of their top level players.
In an interesting twist of fate, Storm's bearded cult hero and best and most improved forward of 2003-2004 Kirk Reynoldson and promising but temperamental 2004 rookie Dustin Cooper, joined the Knights at the end of last season, so this year they're starting their season back at Olympic Park albeit in blue and red instead of purple and blue. Hopefully they won't do a Mitchell Sargent!!
At Mitchell Sargent's first game back in Melbourne after joining the North Queensland Cowboys, he forgot that he's no longer a Storm and went to sit at the Melbourne bench before the entire Storm bench kicked him out laughing and sent him packing back to his own bench! :D LOL
So, first Storm game of the season is this Sunday at 2:30 pm and I just got my membership card for 2005. They're having a BBQ for the fans next to the stadium before the game so you'll spot me there in my Storm gear and I heard it's going to be a warm (hot, really) 30ºC.
This entry was posted
on Tuesday, March 08, 2005 at 5:41 PM.
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On Tuesday, March 08, 2005 9:23:00 PM,We're the Storm, the Melbourne Storm...
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=^^=
On Wednesday, March 09, 2005 10:33:00 AM,
Union is the REAL rugby ;)
Besides, AFL is the one to watch! Go the Hawks!
On Wednesday, March 09, 2005 1:25:00 PM,
Well, find me a club rugby game in Australia that brings in crowds more than a thousand people ;) there's next to no grassroots support for union in this country apart from private school boys and alumni.
Only international union games get massive crowd numbers and for that I credit former ARU CEO John O'Neil for recruiting such an excellent marketing team.
AFL is just an oddball sport in an oddball corner of a barren continent that no one outside it cares about.
;)
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