Season summary
- 11 January – Melbourne sign former Hunter Mariners players Brett Kimmorley, Scott Hill, John Carlaw, and Paul Marquet to mostly complete their roster ahead of the season. Melbourne had previously signed two former Mariners players Robbie Ross and Richard Swain. The signature of Kimmorley was particulary crucial for the new club, with the Illawarra Steelers keen to sign the former Super League Australia test halfback. [2] [3]
- 21 January – Captain Glenn Lazarus was officially ruled out of playing in the pre-season fixtures. Lazarus had broken his ankle in July 1997 and was not able to return for his former club during the 1997 season. [4]
- 25 January – Bookmakers install Melbourne as the $2.50 favourite to win the inaugural NRL wooden spoon. [5]
- 7 February – Wearing white jerseys, Melbourne win their first preseason trial match against Adelaide Rams in Hobart in front of 2,500 fans at the North Hobart Oval. [6] Brett Kimmorley scored the first try in club colours. [7] [8] In the absence of Glenn Lazarus, New Zealand international Tawera Nikau captained the Storm squad. [9] Ahead of the match, the team visited the site of the Port Arthur massacre to pay their respects to the victims. [10]
This is an historic occasion for rugby league.
Everybody in rugby league believed the game would one day come to Melbourne and I'm just proud to be part of the organisation which finally made that hope come through.
John Ribot, Melbourne Storm launch, 1998 [11]
- 12 February – At the club's season launch, John Ribot reveals the official uniform of navy blue jerseys with a stylised white and purple chevron design, worn with navy blue shorts and socks. [12] [13] It was reported that Ribot was looking to sell up to 51% of his ownership in the club back to News Limited in order to "share around the bills." [14] Ribot later said that his intention was always to form a consortium to run the club. [15] At the launch, former News Limited chairman Ken Cowley was appointed the Storm's foundation chairman. [11]
- 28 February – In their final preseason match in front of 6,000 spectators at Albury, Melbourne were level at 12-all against the Canberra Raiders at half time, before the experienced Raiders team scored a 34–16 victory. [16] Five-eighth Scott Hill suffered an arm injury in the match, but was later cleared of serious injury. [17]
- Round 1 – Melbourne upset Illawarra Steelers to record their inaugural premiership victory, with Scott Hill scoring the club's first tries. Hill's second try, converted by winger Craig Smith with two minutes remaining in the match, gave Melbourne their first lead of the match. [18] The Storm were only the fourth non-foundation team to win on debut, and only the second to win away from home. [6] [19] [20] Brett Kimmorley would later receive a warning letter from the NRL Judiciary following a high tackle on Illawarra's Craig Wilson, while Aaron Moule suffered a dislocated shoulder which kept him out for two months. [21]
- Round 3 – Melbourne extend their undefeated start to the season, earning a 26–18 win against the 1997 Super League runners-up Cronulla Sharks. Interchange forward Russell Bawden scored two tries in the match, while hooker Danny Williams was reported for a reckless tackle on Dean Treister. [22] [23] Williams was later suspended for three matches. [24]
- Round 4 – A record crowd of 20,522 watch unbeaten Melbourne play their first home game at Olympic Park. With chaotic scenes outside the ground, fans are allowed to sit on the running track after half time due to overcrowding. [25] [26] [27] Paul Marquet scored the first try for the club at their redeveloped home venue. [28]
- Round 5 – On Good Friday, the Auckland Warriors inflict the Storm's first defeat of the season in a 16–12 victory in New Zealand. [29] Melbourne had led early after referee Bill Harrigan missed a forward pass from Tawara Nikau to Marcus Bai for the Storm's first try. [30] The Storm had a chance late in the match to steal the win after the Warriors were penalised, only for Melbourne to lose possession. [31]
- Round 11 – Melbourne and Illawarra Steelers play out a 14-all draw, with referee Paul Simpkins dropped after a number of errors in the game. [6]
- Round 12 – Melbourne record the biggest win by a debut team in premiership history, thrashing Gold Coast Chargers 62–6 in that club's heaviest defeat in their history.
- Round 13 – Brett Kimmorley kicks the club's first field goal, in a 25–16 win over Balmain Tigers at Leichhardt Oval.
- Round 15 – After defeating North Queensland Cowboys, Melbourne finish the weekend on top of the NRL ladder for the first time. [7]
- 26 June – Rodney Howe is revealed as the third NRL player in 1998 to test positive to a banned substance. [6] [32]
- Round 16 – A controversial try after the final siren to Tony Tatupu hands the Auckland Warriors a 24–21 victory at Olympic Park.
- Round 17 – Brisbane Broncos defeat Melbourne 34–16 in front of a crowd of 35,119, the highest attendance to watch Melbourne, and the second highest crowd in the 1998 regular season.
- 9 July – Rodney Howe is suspended for 22 matches by the ARL drugs tribunal for taking performance-enhancing drugs. Howe was accused of taking the anabolic steroid stanozolol to aid the recovery of a knee injury. [6]
- Round 20 – Marcus Bai scores the first hat-trick in club history in a win against 1997 ARL Premiers Newcastle Knights, to cement a top four spot on the NRL ladder.
- Round 23 – In diabolical weather conditions, with the Belmore Sports Ground field resembling a swimming pool, Melbourne are almost held scoreless for the first time, with a late try to stand-in captain Tawera Nikau the only points for the Storm.
- Round 24 – Melbourne secure a home final by finishing third on the NRL ladder, ending the regular season with a 16–12 win over Canberra Raiders.
- 27 August – Chris Anderson wins the Dally M Coach of the Year award, with Marcus Bai (wing) and Tawera Nikau (lock forward) making the Team of the Year. [33] Brett Kimmorley finished second behind Newcastle halfback Andrew Johns in the count for the Dally M Medal. [34]
- Preliminary qualifying final – Without captain Glenn Lazarus due to injury, a second half masterclass from Brad Fittler hands Melbourne a 12–26 loss in their NRL finals debut. [32] Before the game, Melbourne announce their first ever jersey sponsorship deal with the Honda logo appearing on player's sleeves.
- Elimination quarter final – Melbourne win their first finals game, defeating Canberra Raiders 24–10 to advance to the third week of the five-week finals series. [32]
- Elimination semi final – Eventual premiers Brisbane Broncos knock Melbourne out of the 1998 NRL finals, in a game played at the Sydney Football Stadium. Melbourne putting in their worst performance of the season [32]
- 19 September – Storm feeder team Norths Devils win the 1998 Queensland Cup Grand Final, featuring a number of players who played for Melbourne in 1998.
Milestone games
| Round | Player | Milestone |
|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | See inaugural team | Storm debuts |
| Ben Roarty | NRL debut | |
| Round 2 | Robbie Ross | 50th game |
| Matt Geyer | Storm debut | |
| Round 4 | Wayne Evans | Storm debut |
| Ben Anderson | NRL debut | |
| Round 7 | Tony Martin | Storm debut |
| Round 13 | Anthony Bonus | Storm debut |
| Wade Fenton | NRL debut | |
| Round 14 | John Wilshere | Storm debut |
| Round 15 | Daniel Frame | NRL debut |
| Round 16 | Matt Rua | NRL debut |
| Round 19 | Chris Anderson | 200th NRL game coached |
| Round 20 | Tristan Brady-Smith | Storm debut |
| Preliminary qualifying final | Paul Marquet | 150th game |
Jerseys
Melbourne's inaugural jerseys were navy blue jerseys with a stylised white and purple chevron design, with gold trim and collars, worn with navy blue shorts and socks. Until late in the season, there were no advertising logos, except that of manufacturer Nike. Unusually, Melbourne carried on the Super League innovation of having player names on the back of jerseys, ostensibly to assist new fans to identify players. The team wore the predominately blue jerseys in every game in 1998, except for the round 15 game against North Queensland Cowboys, when a predominately white jersey was worn with white shorts and socks.
