Melbourne Storm congratulates emerging forward Cooper Clarke on being named The Rugby League Players Association (RLPA) Rookie of the Year.
Clarke has been recognised for his breakout NRL season, playing all 24 games for Craig Bellamy’s side in an impressive debut campaign in purple.
The 20-year-old made his NRL debut in Round 1 and finished his rookie season with two tries, 56 tackle breaks, 988 post-contact metres, 2,237 running metres and 637 tackles.
Clarke becomes the first Storm player to be crowned RLPA Rookie of the Year since Harry Grant in 2020, following in the footsteps of Cameron Munster who won the award in 2015.
His impressive season was also recognised at Storm’s Player of the Year Awards last week, where Clarke was named the winner of the Billy Slater Rookie of the Year award.
The RLPA Rookie of the Year award caps a remarkable first season in the NRL for Clarke, who has quickly established himself as an important member of Storm’s forward pack.
