Storm coach Craig Bellamy has a headache on his hands in the front row after enforcer Nelson Asofa-Solomona was slapped with a whopping four-game ban.
That is if he takes the early guilty plea, with Melbourne having until lunchtime on Monday to decide where they will contest the charge, according to The Daily Telegraph.
Asofa-Solomona earnt himself a grade three dangerous contact charge for his hit on Roosters prop Lindsay Collins, which was his third and subsequent offence.
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Lazarus Vaalepu, 25, is shaping as a bench option, having interestingly been born in Penrith, before playing for the Raiders’ junior sides.
The front rower then made the move to Queensland to join the Wynnum Manly Sea Eagles before he signed with the Sunshine Coast Falcons, making his NRL debut in Round 20.
He went on to play six games in 2024, with his best coming in a loss against the Cowboys in Round 26 whilst on a development deal worth around $80,000 per-season.
Joe Chan is ahping as another bench contender, with Tui Kamikamica likely to shift into the starting front row.
For the Panthers, meanwhile, Mitch Kenny escaped a charge for his high shot on Sharks front rower Tom Hazelton and is free to play.
SUNDAY OCTOBER 6
Melbourne Storm vs Penrith Panthers, Accor Stadium at 7:30pm AEST
Last week’s Storm team: 1. Ryan Papenhuyzen 2. Will Warbrick 3. Jack Howarth 4. Nick Meaney 5. Xavier Coates 6. Cameron Munster 7. Jahrome Hughes 8. Nelson Asofa-Solomona 9. Harry Grant 10. Josh King 11. Shawn Blore 12. Eliesa Katoa 13. Trent Loeiro 14. Tyran Wishart 15. Christian Welch 16. Tui Kamikamica 17. Alec McDonald 18. Grant Anderson
Team Tips: Enforcer Nelson Asofa-Solomona was handed a four-game ban with an early guilty plea for his hit on Lindsay Collins and is unlikely to avoid a suspension if he goes to the judiciary. Lazarus Vaalepu, who was born in Penrith, but played his football in Canberra before making the move to Wynnum Manly Seagulls and eventually the Sunshine Coast Falcons, is shaping as the likely bench replacement with Tui Kamikamica slotting into the front row. Joe Chan is another option for Craig Bellamy.
Last week’s Panthers team: 1. Dylan Edwards 2. Sunia Turuva 3. Izack Tago 4. Paul Alamoti 5. Brian To’o 6. Jarome Luai 7. Nathan Cleary 8. Moses Leota 9. Mitch Kenny 10. James Fisher-Harris 11. Luke Garner 12. Liam Martin 13. Isaah Yeo 14. Brad Schneider 15. Lindsay Smith 16. Liam Henry 17. Matt Eisenhuth 18. Casey McLean
Team Tips: Mitch Kenny escaped suspension for a hit on Tom Hazelton. Meanwhile, Nathan Cleary looked to have suffered a shoulder niggle. However he revealed he “felt fine” after copping the knock.
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