Coaches and players typically despise short turnarounds in the NRL, and with good reason.
However Melbourne Storm number seven Jahrome Hughes is bringing an entirely different view into tonight’s crucial away clash with the Sydney Roosters at Allianz Stadium—the first of four consecutive Thursday night games for Craig Bellamy’s men.
Speaking on the One Six Seven podcast with his injured Melbourne teammate Ryan Papenhyuzen, Hughes explained his hunger to bounce straight back after the controversial 18-16 home loss to Manly in Round 20.
“We’re pretty keen to get up there (Sydney),” Hughes confessed of a Storm squad that will be missing Papenhyuzen, Cameron Munster and the suspended Nelson Asofa-Solomona.
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‘Some things we need to do’
“That’s the good thing about short turnarounds, especially after a loss, you can park what’s happened and move on quickly to the next team,” Hughes continued.
“There are some things we need to do, and we want to fix that up before the end of the year.
“Every game is a big game for us now, every team is a tough team, we want to keep building,” the reigning Dally M Medalist added as the NRL finals begin to loom.
Given the condensed NRL ladder, tonight’s Round 21 match-up is crucial for both the Storm and Roosters with each side suffering disappointing losses last weekend.
Should the Roosters lose they could find themselves two wins out of the eight, while a loss for the Storm could see the Broncos and Panthers breathing down their necks for a spot in the top four.
Melbourne faces one of the hardest runs home in 2025 with six of their remaining seven games against top eight contenders—Panthers (away), Bulldogs (home), Broncos (home and away), Roosters (home and away).
The Storm have won 1️⃣9️⃣ consecutive games following a loss 🤯
— Random Stats Guy (@randostatsguy) July 23, 2025
Last time they lost back-to-back was Rd 2-3, 2023 👀#NRL #NRLRoostersStorm pic.twitter.com/jMJF7cFLPA