Round 1 and done... again: Storm carry on a proud legacy

The last time Melbourne lost a Round 1 game Harry Grant was three-years-old and teammates Sua Faalogo, Moses Leo, Ativalu Lisati, Joe Chan, Cooper Clarke weren't even born.

The year was 2001 and Mark Murray was at the helm of a fledgling club in just its fourth season and already boasting a premiership.

It all began for the Storm on March 14, 1998 when Glenn Lazarus captained the new boys to a 14-12 win over the Illawarra Steelers in Wollongong.

They repeated the dose in 1999 against Penrith, winning 32-10 at Olympic Park  to kick start a campaign that would culminate with a premiership.

In 2000 came a Round 1 loss to the Warriors in Auckland before another defeat to the Bulldogs to open the 2001 season in Melbourne.

Since that 14-10 loss to Darren Britt's Doggies the Storm have won a staggering 24 Round 1 games in a row, including three of the last four against the Eels with a combined scoreline of 124-34.

Asked whether his side felt any pressure to keep the record alive, Storm captain Harry Grant admitted it had been raised ahead of the 2026 opener.

It was probably spoken about a little bit because it was going to be there as a bit of noise," Grant told media post-match.

"The playing group really respects it [the record] because there's a lot of old boys sitting at home watching and knowing they have contributed to that as a part of the history of the club.

"Call it a record or a streak or whatever, but there's plenty of people who have played a part in that and hopefully they can be pretty proud that's it's still rolling and they have contributed over the years.

"Ultimately the work you have done in the pre-season, you get a chance to showcase it."

And showcase it they did, running in six second-half tries to turn an 18-4 half-time lead into a demolition job as big guns Grant, Jahrome Hughes and Cameron Munster fired.

Kangaroos hooker Grant produced a dummy-half masterclass with 86 run metres, two tries, two line breaks and 28 tackles before leaving the field with a cramped hamstring in the 59th minute.

"Harry Had one hell of a pre-season and one hell of a game there tonight," coach Craig Bellamy said.

"That second try we scored was really important to us and there wouldn't be too many dummy halves who could score a try in that situation. 

"We have been blessed as a club and me as a coach to have two guys [Cameron Smith and Grant] that touch the ball more than anyone else in the team and to have Cameron play as long as he did and as soon as he retired Harry came in afterwards.

"The club has been very fortunate to have two players like Cam and Harry.

"It's a great start but consistency week in and week out is the key.

"Starting strong and just petering out is not going to cut it."

History shows us that the Storm have played finals every year bar two since 2001 so 'petering out' has never been an issue for the men in purple.