The king is dead, long live the king.
Following the dramatic events of Sunday afternoon in Brisbane, the 2025 NRL season will reach its conclusion with the crowning of a new champion for the first time in five years.
It will also be the first decider between two non-Sydney teams since 2017.
In a somewhat poetic twist, the last two grand final victims of the Penrith Panthers juggernaut will lock horns with a chance to seize the vacated throne—and erase painful recent memories in the process.
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In the purple corner, Craig Bellamy, Harry Grant, Cameron Munster and 2024 runners up the Melbourne Storm.
In the maroon corner, Michael Maguire, Reece Walsh, Payne Haas and 2023 runners up the Brisbane Broncos.
With all the added drama and complexity of injury and suspension returns, it promises to deliver an intriguing contest, even more so given the two sides have already played each other twice in the past eight weeks, with the ledger standing at one home win apiece.
The Storm triumphed 22-2 in the season’s first meeting between the two grand final combatants back in Round 23 at AAMI Park, the infamous ‘triple hammy’ match that left Adam Reynolds, Ezra Mam and Selwyn Cobbo injury stricken.
Brisbane then returned the favour 30-14 in the final round of the NRL regular season at Suncorp, booking their place in the top four in a clash also memorable for Jahrome Hughes breaking his forearm in his return from a shoulder dislocation.
Now on neutral territory at Accor Stadium in Sydney, equidistant between their two home cities, we get a premiership tie-breaker in a repeat of the 2006 grand final won by the Broncos, 15-8.
That was the last time Brisbane lifted the prized Provan-Summons Trophy, something the Storm achieved most recently in 2020.
The Storm are currently listed as warm favourites with Sportsbet paying $1.71 ahead of the Broncos at $2.15.