Two-time premiership-winning forward Nelson Asofa-Solomona has committed his playing future to Melbourne Storm by signing a new four-year contract extension.
Regarded as one of the most damaging front-rowers in the NRL, the Kiwi international, who first wore the Storm colours as an under-20s player in 2014, will be in the purple jersey through until the end of the 2027 season.
Asofa-Solomona signed his new deal prior to tonight’s ANZAC Day match where he played a massive role off the interchange bench in his first match since being injured in round two.
As well as being one of Storm’s most influential players with his strong running and hard-hitting defence on the field, Asofa-Solomona is now one of the most experienced members of the club’s NRL squad.
Since his debut in round eight of the 2015 competition, he has gone on to play in 167 NRL matches and has featured in the NRL finals series in each of his eight seasons in first grade.
His first NRL premiership came in 2017 when Storm defeated the North Queensland Cowboys in the grand final, with the big front-rower used as a weapon off the interchange bench.
He followed up three years later by starting at lock in Storm’s grand final win against Penrith.
Now 27-years-old, Asofa-Solomona has also played 12 Test matches for New Zealand and was man-of-the-match in Storm’s victorious World Cup Challenge team in 2018.
His Storm resume also includes the 2014 Darren Bell Under-20s Player of the Year Award and the 2017 Spirit of Anzac Medal.
Storm chairman Matt Tripp said securing Asofa-Solomona through to the end of 2017 was a great result for the club.
“Nelson already has a tremendous record of achievement here at Storm and we’re sure he will continue to build on that over the coming years,” he said.
“He’s in the prime of his career and is embracing his new role as one of the leaders of our forward pack.
“We hope Nelson will be a one-club player with Storm. This new contract will go a long way to helping to achieve that aim as he progresses towards and beyond the 200-game milestone.
“I’m sure our members and fans will be delighted to know they will be cheering on big NAS for many more years to come.”
