Both coming off big wins, the Roosters and Storm will welcome a chance to flex their premiership muscles when the two competition heavyweights kick off Round 7 at Allianz Stadium.
Melbourne are sitting pretty at second on the ladder after stealing another narrow victory off the Bulldogs on Friday to boast a 4-1 record after the first six rounds.
With all four of those wins coming out of AAMI Park, Thursday night's showdown will come as a big opportunity for Craig Bellamy's side to prove they can carry their winning form on the road after going down to the Knights in Newcastle in Round 3.
The Roosters, meanwhile, will be hot off a morale boosting win over Newcastle, overcoming the absence of several big names to claim their fourth victory for the season.
The performance of Joey Manu was a bright spot for the Roosters and Trent Robinson will be hoping the Kiwi superstar will continue to get plenty of opportunities when he slides back to the centres this week.
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Team News
Roosters: No further changes on game day after Sam Walker was ruled out on Wednesday after he failed to pass the concussion protocols. James Tedesco (concussion) returns after missing Round 6, with Joey Manu shifting back to the centres and Joseph-Aukuso Suaali'i going to the wing. Sitili Tupouniua is sidelined with a head knock, his place on the bench taken by Egan Butcher. Fetalaiga Pauga is 18th man.
Storm: Kiwi giant Nelson Asofa-Solomona has been moved to the bench an hour before kick-off in his first game of the season, with Christian Welch to start the game. Tui Kamikamica has been sidelined by a calf injury, while Joe Chan (hand) is back from injury on the bench. Jack Howarth is 18th man.
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Stat Attack
- The Roosters have not defeated the Storm in Sydney since 2019.
- The Storm have won eight of their past nine games against the Roosters.
- Roosters winger Daniel Tupou has scored five tries in six games in 2024.
- Storm winger Xavier Coates has scored seven tries in his past three games against the Roosters.
- The Roosters have not won back-to-back games in 2024.
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Stats supplied by David Middleton, League Information Services, author of the official annual of the NRL.