Storm concerns laid bare as stunning streak at risk; legend’s insane Moses call — Buy or Sell

The Storm will unveil a new-look team on Thursday night as they aim to keep their remarkable Round 1 record alive … but there are some concerns.

Watch every game of every round of the Premiership Season LIVE with no ad-breaks during play on FOX LEAGUE, available on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.

Parramatta’s three-game winning streak to end last season has them as a popular pick to get back to the finals, but is the hype justified?

Meanwhile, can the Raiders dust themselves off after a heartbreaking finals loss to Brisbane and prove last year’s magical regular season was no fluke?

Welcome to foxsports.com.au’s Buy or Sell, where we give a verdict on the big, burning narratives in the NRL.

‘VULNERABLE’ STORM’S STUNNING ROUND 1 STREAK IN SERIOUS DANGER?

Not only is it one of the most well-documented records in Australian sport, it is also one of the more staggering.

It’s been 23 years since the Storm have lost a Round 1 game, with coach Craig Bellamy unbeaten in the opening round since taking over way back in 2003.

For the third time in four seasons, the Storm will kick off their campaign against Parramatta.

The Storm are warm favourites as you’d expect, but there are some concerns heading into 2026.

While they’ve made (and lost) the last two deciders, there is an air of uncertainty around Melbourne this season.

Ryan Papenhuyzen, Nelson Asofa-Solomona and Jonah Pezet left the club in the off-season, star back rower Eli Katoa is out for the season while superstar winger Xavier Coates is sidelined with an Achilles injury.

In addition, the Storm were dealt a psychological blow on the eve of the season when they missed out in their drastic pursuit of Zac Lomax.

According to Braith Anasta, the Storm’s player turnover is cause for concern.

“It’s a little bit of a concern. If it wasn’t the Melbourne Storm who are so consistent and elite and their leadership from the top down, they don’t take anything else other than perfection.

“They are one of the premier clubs and have been for so long but you can’t deny the fact that they’ve lost key players and have a lack of depth.

“Eli Katoa’s injury is the icing on the cake and hurts them dearly … They don’t have much back up in key positions.

“I don’t think they can win the comp.”

Journalist Michael Carayannis agreed, believing the Storm are “way more vulnerable” than they’ve been in prior seasons.

“They’re going to need two of Munster, Grant and Hughes to be on song every game because you look at the rest of that squad, and it’s just not as imposing as its been in

“They’re weaker than last year.”

The Eels meanwhile have only improved their team this off-season after finishing 2025 with a flurry.

They’ve added Pezet to partner Mitch Moses in the halves, boast a clean bill of health to start the season and will carry plenty of depth on their bench.

If the Storm were ever in danger to drop a Round 1 game, this might be the year.

Verdict – BUY

2026 SEASON PREVIEWS

STORM: ‘Real genius’ behind Bellamy... and weakness that could bring Storm undone

PANTHERS: Big change puts rest of NRL on notice... it has Panthers primed for revenge

SEA EAGLES: Big unknown in new era... and superstar facing make-or-break year

MITCH MOSES HAS GENUINE DALLY M CLAIMS

According to Matty Johns, Eels halfback Mitch Moses wins this year’s Dally M Player of the Year by a “fair margin”.

Johns made the bold declaration on Fox League’s Matty and Cronk, believing the Eels will improve into the eight on the back of Moses, who will be unlocked by the arrival of new halves partner Jonah Pezet.

“I’ve got him the Dally M winner. I think he wins by a fair margin,” Johns said.

“If they can have a good season and get themselves in the eight, I think he’s the short priced favourite.”

It’s a fair shout given the form Moses was in during the back-end of last season once he returned from injury.

Parramatta won 10 games in 2025, including four of their last five, but many smart judges are expecting that win total to increase sharply.

Hall-of-Fame halfback Cooper Cronk believes with Johns’ assertion that Moses should be favourite for the Dally M.

Moses was picked in the Ashes squad late last year to tour England but didn’t play a minute.

Drawing from his own rep level experiences, Cronk says the lack of playing time will drive the Eels star.

“Mitchell Moses, having been in his shoes where you’re sort of the second or third halfback at rep level and you go away for the Ashes and don’t play a game, well that drives you to get better,” Cronk said.

“He now has Jonah Pezet … and I think having another threat alongside him is going to open up Moses.

“I think he’ll be the best player for a team around the middle of the mark that wins more games than they lose.”

Verdict – BUY

WILL THE BRONCOS FEEL A PREMIERSHIP HANGOVER?

There have been a couple of early hurdles in 2026 as the Broncos prepare to defend their title.

Firstly, the Payne Haas bombshell.

Haas will no doubt be hungry to leave the Broncos on a high and win back-to-back competitions, but you have to wonder what effect his looming exit will have on the playing group.

Secondly, can the Broncos bounce back from a World Club Challenge loss?

History suggests that yes you can. The Panthers did it twice.

Simply put, while the start of 2026 hasn’t been ideal, it’s not going to derail this side.

“I’m not overly concerned about them,” journalist Brent Read said on NRL360.

“Payne is the sort of guy that now he has made this decision, will be focused on winning a competition because he’s that driven.

”You saw Reece Walsh in that WCC. In the second half, he inspired a comeback … I’m not I’m not overly concerned about them.”

“I agree I think the Broncos will be fine. I’m a bit worried about players moving and all the rest but I actually think they’re still gonna have a very good season,” NRL 360 host Braith Anasta added.

Verdict – SELL

MORE NRL NEWS

SAGA OVER: Shock end to Lomax drama as Eels teammate’s fatal snub revealed

‘JUST FOUND OUT’: Ryles reacts to big Lomax call

PLAYER SWAP: What every club could offer for Lomax

DOLPHINS. A TOP FOUR HOPE?

On paper, the Dolphins are stacked.

A team that has steadily improved with each season since entering the comp in 2023, unfortunately they have yet to make the eight.

In fairness, injuries robbed them last season. They were luckless in that regard in 2025 and should have been playing finals football.

Alas, they didn’t. It should only make this group hungrier though.

While it will be hard to replicate what the Raiders were able to do last season, which was go on an epic Cinderella run to win the minor premiership, if there’s any team who missed the eight last year who could do what Canberra did, it’s the Dolphins according to Fox League’s Matty Johns.

“For me it’s a no-brainer. Dolphins,” Johns said.

“I look at the Dolphins and if they get a decent run with injuries, in my opinion they’ll definitely, defeintely make top eight.

“They have good outside backs, strong pack, young players on the up and halfback Isaiya Katoa.

“If you look at all those things, and they should be top eight this. In fact, they are a real chance of top four.”

Katoa has improved sharply in just three years in first grade and he’s surrounded by talent, notably strike centre Herbie Farnworth, Selwyn Cobbo, Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow and Origin forwards Tom Gilbert and Tom Flegler.

Verdict - BUY

CANBERRA WILL PROVE 2025 WAS NO FLUKE

It was a magical regular season last year for the Green Machine.

They surprised everyone to finish atop the ladder, driven by several youngsters who turned into stars of the game perhaps a bit earlier than expected, and one of the NRL’s most skilful and dominant forward packs.

Unfortunately for their passionate fan base, the club were bundled out in straight sets after a brutally unlucky loss to eventual winners Brisbane before a terrible second half sealed their fate in a semi against the Cronulla.

The Raiders’ fans are likely still sensitive about how their season ended, particularly that 29-28 loss to the Broncos.

It seems coach Ricky Stuart took a bit of time to get over the stunning loss, after Phil Gould revealed a conversation the pair shared during the off-season.

“I hope I’m not talking out of school here but during the off-season I got invited out to Randwick races and Ricky was there and he turned around to me and said, ‘can you believe that final?’ It was still eating at him,” Gould said on his Six Tackles with Gus podcast.

“I’ve never seen anything like that when a team celebrated three times and had it taken away from them … It was extraordinary. They won that game and the whole course of the season changes if they do.”

The query around the Raiders is halfback.

Jamal Fogarty had a terrific season in 2025 and turned that form into a huge new deal with Manly.

The young and inexperienced Ethan Sanders takes over but the raps on him are high and he did show in limited first grade action last season that he’s a player to be excited about.

Sanders will need to be very good for the Raiders to finish in the top four again, but behind this forward pack of Young, Tapine, Papali’i and Horsburgh, his job will be made so much easier.

Verdict – BUY

ARE THE EELS OVERHYPED?

Parramatta left their fans wanting more when last season ended, playing a brand of footy which was easy to enjoy in the back-end.

Their poor start to the year and a frustrating Mitch Moses injury meant that the Eels were out of finals contention early, but they were able to finish with a flurry and collect a few big scalps late, including wins over the Broncos, Roosters and Warriors.

So, after a shaky start, the first year of the Jason Ryles era was considered somewhat of a success and certainly a step in the right direction.

The question is now, can they carry that form over to this season?

It’s hard to think they won’t given the amount of quality in the side, especially in their spine.

Moses and recruit Jonah Pezet form a lethal halves combo, Isaiah Iongi is one of the best young fullbacks in the world while hooker Ryley Smith is another young talent who played above his years last season.

After slow starts, their forwards came on significantly in the second half of the season and a few of the big boys were impressive during the trials.

The hype is justified at this stage as they have the talent to make a serious finals push.

Verdict – SELL

SEA EAGLES WILL STRUGGLE POST-DCE

Unlike recent seasons, there aren’t any standouts for the wooden spoon.

The Knights and Titans might seem like obvious picks given they were last and second last on the table respectively in 2025, but injury free and with new coaches, there’s an expectation they’ll rise up the ladder this season.

One team who has been discussed as a potential spoon chance is the Sea Eagles.

Of course, Daly Cherry-Evans is no longer at the club, replaced by the more than capable Jamal Fogarty, however halfback isn’t the concern with this side.

There are several players in Manly’s current best 19 that might struggle to keep a spot in first grade this year.

The forward pack has a number of players who are nearing the end of their career while the backline is talented but lacking depth. It’s probably fair to say that they are one Tom Trbojevic injury away from tumbling down the standings.

You can’t read a whole heap into trial games but their performance in attack against the Bunnies was hard to watch.

Despite the noise heading into the 2026 season proper, Sea Eagles centre Reuben Garrick is confident his side will have to

“That’s the industry we’re in because you’ve got to win, and we will be winning,” he told Newswire.

“I know a lot of people are writing us off, but we’re always the underdog here at Manly and we’re never tipped to win anything … I think we’re going to prove people wrong this year.”

Click here to read article