Christian Welch
Captain - Prop
Player Bio
- Height:
- 195 cm
- Date of Birth:
- 19 July 1994
- Weight:
- 110 kg
- Birthplace:
- Sydney, NSW
- Age:
- 29
- Nickname:
- Welchy
- Debut Club:
- Melbourne Storm
- Date:
- 10 May 2015
- Opposition:
- Parramatta Eels
- Round:
- 9
- Previous Club:
- -
- Junior Club:
- Easts Tigers, Brisbane
- Biography:
Arriving in Melbourne as a fresh-faced Queenslander, Welch has graduated through the Storm development system to now become the club’s co-captain.
Starting his journey in purple at U20s level after schooling at Brisbane’s Villanova College, Welch went on to captain the Thunderbolts before earning his way onto the NRL list. His first-grade debut followed shortly after in Round 9, 2015.
Plying his trade in the HOSTPLUS Cup with the Brisbane Tigers, Welch made himself a regular in Craig Bellamy’s bench rotation in 2016 and narrowly missed out on a maiden premiership as Cronulla held off Melbourne in the big dance.
It would not be smooth sailing over the next few seasons with two separate ACL injuries forcing the front-rower for two lengthy stints on the sidelines. As a result, Welch missed out on Storm’s 2017 Premiership and was unable to feature in the Club’s 2019 finals run.
The time would come though for one of the most loved players in the competition when the big man got his fairytale at the culmination of the 2020 season as Storm triumphed over rivals Penrith in the Grand Final.
Alongside Jesse Bromwich, Welch was named Captain of Melbourne Storm in 2022. Unfortuantely, the leadership role was short-lived after the front rower suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in Round 1.
The 28-year old has made six appearances at Origin level after making his Queensland debut in 2019.
Welch also sits on the board of the Rugby League Player’s Association.
Christian is sponsored by Kayleen Berry, Brett Wheeler & Kris Hayward, Tricia Ratcliffe and Graham & Kay Middleton.
Career
- Appearances
- 143
- Tries
- 7
2023 Season
- Appearances
- 25
Scoring
- Tries
- 2
Attack
- Tackle Breaks
- 35
- Average Hit Ups
- 10
- Post Contact Metres
- 808.7
Passing
- Offloads
- 39
Defence
- Tackles Made
- 744
- Tackle Efficiency
-
Running Metres
- Average Running Metres
- 110
- Total Running Metres
- 2751
Fantasy
- Total Points
- 1080
- Average Points
- 43.2
2023 Season - By Round
| Round | Opponent | Score | Position | Minutes Played | Tries | Goals | Points | Try Assists | Linebreaks | Tackle Breaks | Post Contact Metres | Offloads | Receipts | Tackles Made | Missed Tackles | Total Running Metres | Hit Up Running Metres | Kick Return Metres | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eels | Won | 12 - 16 | Prop | 58 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 40 | 3 | 16 | 37 | 4 | 134 | 107 | 27 |
| 2 | Bulldogs | Lost | 12 - 26 | Prop | 62 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 56 | 3 | 26 | 33 | 4 | 154 | 138 | - |
| 3 | Titans | Lost | 38 - 34 | Prop | 32 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 12 | - | 8 | 25 | - | 62 | 34 | 28 |
| 4 | Wests Tigers | Won | 24 - 12 | Prop | 47 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 38 | - | 16 | 40 | 1 | 124 | 92 | 32 |
| 5 | Rabbitohs | Won | 10 - 18 | Prop | 46 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 43 | - | 20 | 34 | 5 | 125 | 125 | - |
| 6 | Roosters | Won | 28 - 8 | Prop | 49 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 28 | 1 | 17 | 29 | 1 | 113 | 100 | 12 |
| 7 | Sea Eagles | Lost | 18 - 8 | Prop | 54 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 47 | 1 | 16 | 34 | 4 | 146 | 112 | 5 |
| 8 | Warriors | Won | 30 - 22 | Prop | 50 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 51 | - | 16 | 31 | 6 | 164 | 121 | 43 |
| 10 | Rabbitohs | Lost | 12 - 28 | Prop | 44 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 22 | - | 16 | 26 | 4 | 108 | 86 | 17 |
| 11 | Broncos | Won | 24 - 16 | Prop | 52 | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | 47 | - | 19 | 32 | 4 | 150 | 122 | 27 |
| 12 | Dolphins | Won | 16 - 24 | Prop | 59 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 25 | 1 | 18 | 34 | 3 | 100 | 64 | 11 |
| 14 | Cowboys | Lost | 45 - 20 | Prop | 43 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 17 | 2 | 12 | 35 | 1 | 56 | 56 | - |
| 15 | Sharks | Won | 54 - 10 | Prop | 49 | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | 41 | 6 | 20 | 21 | - | 161 | 124 | 32 |
| 17 | Sea Eagles | Won | 24 - 6 | Prop | 68 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 35 | 3 | 19 | 47 | 4 | 116 | 110 | - |
| 18 | Panthers | Lost | 16 - 34 | Prop | 39 | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | 22 | 2 | 12 | 22 | 3 | 75 | 55 | 20 |
| 20 | Roosters | Won | 16 - 30 | Prop | 43 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 30 | 5 | 15 | 25 | 6 | 99 | 91 | 7 |
| 21 | Knights | Lost | 26 - 18 | Prop | 44 | - | - | - | - | - | 2 | 24 | 3 | 16 | 17 | 2 | 83 | 83 | - |
| 22 | Eels | Won | 46 - 16 | Prop | 49 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 39 | 3 | 17 | 35 | 1 | 140 | 87 | 46 |
| 23 | Panthers | Lost | 26 - 6 | Prop | 51 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 44 | 1 | 19 | 29 | 2 | 122 | 96 | 26 |
| 24 | Raiders | Won | 48 - 2 | Prop | 46 | 1 | - | 4 | - | 1 | 4 | 13 | 1 | 13 | 25 | 2 | 57 | 38 | 9 |
| 25 | Dragons | Won | 28 - 38 | Prop | 41 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 14 | 1 | 10 | 35 | 3 | 66 | 44 | 17 |
| 26 | Titans | Won | 37 - 16 | Prop | 53 | 1 | - | 4 | - | 1 | 4 | 37 | - | 15 | 30 | 2 | 114 | 93 | 9 |
| 28 | Broncos | Lost | 26 - 0 | Prop | 41 | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 24 | 1 | 8 | 23 | 2 | 67 | 50 | 17 |
| 29 | Roosters | Won | 18 - 13 | Interchange | 32 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 39 | 1 | 14 | 19 | 2 | 141 | 111 | 17 |
| 30 | Panthers | Lost | 38 - 4 | Interchange | 35 | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 20 | 1 | 12 | 26 | 4 | 65 | 53 | 11 |
Career By Season
| Year | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Win % | Tries | Goals | Points | Tackle Breaks | Post Contact Metres | Offloads | Tackles Made | Missed Tackles | Tackle Efficiency | Total Running Metres | Average Running Metres | Kick Return Metres | Total Points | Average Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Storm | 2015 | 10 | 8 | 2 | - | 80% | - | - | - | - | 81 | 1 | 140 | 7 | 92.99% | 254 | 25.44 | 11 | 149 | 14.0 |
| Storm | 2016 | 17 | 13 | 4 | - | 76% | - | - | - | 5 | 166 | 25 | 238 | 15 | 90.92% | 749 | 44.09 | 131 | 322 | 18.0 |
| Storm | 2017 | 8 | 7 | 1 | - | 88% | - | - | - | 8 | 97 | 4 | 166 | 18 | 87.68% | 419 | 52.00 | 76 | 184 | 23.0 |
| Storm | 2018 | 26 | 17 | 9 | - | 65% | 2 | - | 8 | 27 | 589 | 16 | 582 | 40 | 89.68% | 1,765 | 67.00 | 415 | 756 | 29.1 |
| Storm | 2019 | 16 | 13 | 3 | - | 81% | 1 | - | 4 | 30 | 554 | 18 | 313 | 23 | 90.16% | 1,788 | 111.00 | 423 | 548 | 34.2 |
| Storm | 2020 | 19 | 15 | 4 | - | 79% | - | - | - | 19 | 947 | 35 | 546 | 40 | 89.87% | 2,370 | 124.00 | 450 | 791 | 41.6 |
| Storm | 2021 | 21 | 17 | 4 | - | 81% | 2 | - | 8 | 24 | 1,031 | 45 | 528 | 46 | 91.99% | 2,937 | 139.00 | 685 | 904 | 43.0 |
| Storm | 2022 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 100% | - | - | - | - | 37 | 2 | 32 | 4 | 88.89% | 116 | 116.00 | 11 | 41 | 41.0 |
| Storm | 2023 | 25 | 15 | 10 | - | 60% | 2 | - | 8 | 35 | 809 | 39 | 744 | 70 | 91.40% | 2,751 | 110.00 | 421 | 1,080 | 43.2 |
Career Overall
| Year Start | Year End | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Win % | Tries | Goals | Points | Tackle Breaks | Post Contact Metres | Offloads | Tackles Made | Missed Tackles | Tackle Efficiency | Total Running Metres | Average Running Metres | Kick Return Metres | Total Points | Average Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Storm | 2015 | 2023 | 143 | 106 | 37 | - | 74% | 7 | - | 28 | 148 | 3,699 | 184 | 2,966 | 263 | 91.86% | 11,667 | 81.00 | 2,324 | 4,291 | 30.0 |
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Melbourne Storm respect and honour the Traditional Custodians of the land and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and future. We acknowledge the stories, traditions and living cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on the lands we meet, gather and play on.
