Melbourne Storm will return to an uninterrupted season in 2024 with 11 home games fixtured at AAMI Park, including a blockbuster season opener against the Penrith Panthers.
Members and fans will be able to see the Purple jersey go head-to-head against the reigning premiers on Friday, March 8, followed by a Saturday night Trans-Tasman clash against the Warriors in Round 2.
Storm will then hit the road to take on the Newcastle Knights followed by a week off over Easter, before returning home in Round 5 against 2023 Grand Finalists, the Brisbane Broncos.
The highly anticipated annual Anzac Day match will have a new opponent in 2024 with the South Sydney Rabbitohs travelling to AAMI Park in Round 8 for the traditional blockbuster.
Storm CEO Justin Rodski said it was going to be an exciting start to the season with the number of home games at the front end.
“We are very excited to be playing 11 home games at AAMI Park again, the first time since 2019,” Rodski said.
“We have a big start to the season, kicking off with games against the Panthers and Warriors in the first two rounds, and then the Broncos in Round 5 and our Anzac Day blockbuster in Round 8 against the Rabbitohs.
“It is pleasing to have secured home games in Round 1 and Round 5 when we know there is no AFL being played in Melbourne and we hope to have big crowds at AAMI Park to watch the Storm on both weekends.
“There are also some great family friendly games across the season including the King’s Birthday eve match against the Knights at 2pm on a Sunday and the Warriors, Sharks, Raiders, Roosters, Dolphins and Dragons all played on a Saturday night.
“It is unfortunate to be ending our annual ANZAC Day match against the Warriors, however, we understand the rationale behind the decision to play a game in New Zealand on ANZAC Round and now look forward to hosting South Sydney in our traditional ANZAC Day game next year.
“We appreciate the complexities of the fixture and the difficult job the NRL has in trying to support every club with requests, and while we are generally happy with the result, we would have preferred a more balanced home and away mix across the season.
“With the front ended home games, we have a gruelling travel schedule to finish the year with four away games in five weeks, including back-to-back games in Sydney and QLD, with two five-day breaks in the same period.
“We are very lucky to have loyal and passionate members and fans and can’t wait to welcome them back to our home in Melbourne.”
