There is a fair amount of creative genius on this list.
Some of the greatest playmakers of the modern era have come through Melbourne over the last 20 years.
We take a look at the five-eighths and halfbacks in contention for the Melbourne Storm team of the 20-years:
Scott Hill
- 177 Storm games (1998-2006)
- 46 tries
The first man to wear the No.6 jersey. Hill finished Storm’s inaugural season in 1998 as the Club’s leading try scorer alongside Marcus Bai with a total of 14. A majestic passing ability, the Australian and NSW representative showcased creativity at its finest on the rugby league field. Hill represented everything you needed as a playmaker in your team and was a leading hand in driving the Club’s success during the first nine seasons.
Brett Kimmorley
- 79 Storm games (1998-2000)
- 27 tries
- 1999 Premiership player
Melbourne Storm’s original halfback, Kimmorley was named the 1999 Clive Churchill medalist due to his instrumental performance in swinging the game Melbourne’s way. He had a unique way of seeing the game and possessed a ‘show and go’ that opposing defences could not help but fall for time and time again.
Cooper Cronk
- 323 Storm games (2004-2017)
- 92 tries
- 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017 Premiership player
Calm, cool, composed – natural born match winner. Even the most ardent Storm fan would have lost count of the amount of times the mercurial No.7 stepped up to win the game for Storm off his own boot. In the frantic heat of competition, it would be Cronk who would organise the Storm attack like a maestro conducting his orchestra. A five-time Dally M Halfback of the Year, two-time Dally M Player of the Year as well as a golden boot winner, his greatness as an individual player was unforgettable and that was before you even consider the freakish telepathy he shared with Cameron Smith and Billy Slater.
Gareth Widdop
- 70 Storm games (2010-2013)
- 10 tries
- 2012 Premiership player
Widdop came to Melbourne as a relatively unknown Englishman but by the team he left Melbourne, he did so as one of the NRL’s premiere playmakers. He formed a formidable halves partnership alongside Cooper Cronk and possessed an elite kicking game. When Widdop first arrived at Melbourne he began his career as a fullback, starring for Storm’s premiership-winning 2009 NYC team before paving his own path in first grade.
Greg Inglis
- 117 Storm games (2005-10)
- 78 tries
- 2007, 2009 Premiership player
A player who could do it all, in just about every position on the field. Inglis began his Storm career at centre initially before making the transition to the No.6 for the 2007 season, helping propel the Club to Premiership glory. G.I spent two seasons alongside Cooper Cronk in the halves before moving back to centre in 2009. As any Storm fan would attest, there were fewer better sights on a weekend than seeing Greg Inglis galloping down the touchline of Olympic Park as the purple army rose together as one.
Matt Orford
- 120 Storm games (2001-2005)
- 52 tries
He may have only stood at 169cm however Matt Orford was proof that size really does not matter. A great runner of the football, Orford knew how to find the line. In his debut season for Melbourne in 2001, Orford scored 15 tries to finish the year as the Club’s equa leading try scorer alongside Aaron Mule. For five seasons he steered the ship at halfback alongside Scott Hill.
