Cameron Munster has revealed that he is back training and is a possibility to make his NRL return as early as next week. The Storm playmaker has been sidelined since suffering a tear in his adductor tendon at the Magic Round in May and conceded things had been “up and down” in his recovery from the troublesome injury.

Munster says he will need post-season surgery to address a ‘hip imbalance’ but is confident his body will allow him to play out the 2024 NRL season. However, despite being without their star No.6 Melbourne have maintained top spot on the NRL ladder – winning five of the six games he has missed with two byes during that period as well.

It was originally hoped that Munster could be ready to go for Saturday’s AAMI Park showdown with the Sydney Roosters but that plan was shelved to ensure he was fully cleared by medical staff after his latest scans. After facing the Tri Colours, Melbourne then play the Dolphins away in round 21 before welcoming St George Illawarra in round 22, with Munster most likely to return in the latter game.

The Storm No.6 says he is back training and expects to be right to go sometime in the next fortnight. “Slowly but surely. It’s been an up and down, frustrating injury for myself,” he said on Wednesday. “Doing everything I can with the boys at the moment, full training, full noise. Had scans yesterday and just waiting on the clearance from the doc. Once I get that I’ll be ready to go, hopefully in the next couple of weeks.”

Munster confirmed he would need surgery at the end of the season to ensure the issues with his groin didn’t persist into the 2025 season but insists right now he is feeling good. “I’ve got a little bit of an imbalance in my hips at the moment. I will require surgery at the end of the year,” he told SEN.

“My groins are the ones causing me the most problems. That’s the most frustrating thing. One day I am good, then the next day I can’t even put my jocks on. I’m sure a lot of athletes have had these injuries and frustrating moments. At the moment just getting better. Had the week off last week, which was a blessing in disguises for the body. Now I’m back at full noise, which is really good.”

Nat Butcher ready for Melbourne Storm examination.

They’ve been the hottest attacking team in 2024 – averaging 30 points per game this season – but the Roosters are keen to test just how good they are against the Storm this weekend. Melbourne are currently four points clear of the second-placed Panthers, with the Tricolours two points further back in third.

And while Trent Robinson’s men have the best-attacking record in the NRL this year, they have struggled against top teams in 2024. The Roosters are 0-3 against the other top-four teams this season, having lost to the Storm, Panthers and Sharks.

Their record against Melbourne is also far from solid, having lost nine of their past 10 matches – including an 18-13 thriller in the second week of the finals last year. But Tri Colours forward Nat Butcher says the team is excited by this weekend’s match and is ready to prove that they are serious premiership contenders.

“It tests you to be able to go with the best,” versatile forward Nat Butcher said. “We played them earlier in the year and we were pretty disappointed with how we played, but we’ve come a long way and I feel like we’re a new team now.