When Jahrome Hughes runs onto AAMI Park on Friday evening, it will be just 22 days since he broke his wrist.
In what was considered a risk to play him, Hughes last played in Round 27, ending a previous absence from a shoulder injury that he had sustained in Round 21 against the Sydney Roosters.
He will likely need surgery after the season ends, regardless, but the Storm pushed him back to get some match fitness under his belt before the finals.
Disaster struck in the 25th minute of what went on to be a horror loss to the Brisbane Broncos, though, when Hughes broke his wrist.
That ruled him out of the opening week of the finals against the Canterbury Bulldogs, with Jonah Pezet doing a tremendous job in filling in for the New Zealand international.
Pezet has come under renewed interest from rival clubs once again following the performance, which saw him score a nine out of ten in Zero Tackle's player ratings and earn widespread praise.
While it's clear the former junior New South Wales State of Origin representative is too good for reserve grade, he is not yet at the point of his career where he is ready to guide a team to the premiership.
Not to say that he can't, but in a selection battle, he is losing to Jahrome Hughes, who won last year's Dally M Medal and has been regularly among the game's best for years, every single time.
That's why if there was any chance of Hughes playing against the Cronulla Sharks, he had to.
The Sharks will present a very different challenge to the one Canterbury did, with the blue and white limping into the finals, being down on manpower, and then losing inspirational captain and centre Stephen Crichton in the opening minutes of the game, while Viliame Kikau played it out after passing a HIA, but clearly had a problem with his eye socket.
A week off is exactly what the doctor ordered for Melbourne, with Hughes' return joined by that of fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen, who missed the qualifying final with a concussion.
Shawn Blore, who had a fractured larynx, also missed the game after being one of Melbourne's most consistent throughout the course of the 2025 campaign.
But it's Hughes who brings this outfit together.
The challenge the Sharks present is not only one of a very in-form outfit, but one who have done it on their defence, rather than point-scoring or flash and style.
Cronulla kept the Bulldogs to six points in the final round of the regular season, then were up and in the face of the Sydney Roosters and Canberra Raiders over the last fortnight.
The stretch immediately after halftime in the game against the Roosters was simply sensational - they barely went over halfway with the ball in hand for a period of over ten minutes, but simply refused to crack.
There was more of the same against the attacking machine that had been the Raiders throughout 2025 over the weekend.
Maybe the biggest issue for the Sharks is the six-day turnaround leading into their trip to Melbourne - that is tough by any standards, but even more so at this time of year when you've just got the better of the minor premiers, then have to come into a game against a side in Victoria who have made ten of the last eleven preliminary finals.
It's that stat alone that proves the value of Hughes, though.
The seeming downfall of Melbourne has been brought up time and time again during that stretch.
Key departures or retirements have brought the same rhetoric and line of questioning every year. Is this finally the season the all-mighty Storm sinks?
But it hasn't happened, and so much of that is down to the guidance of Hughes at halfback.
It's hard to say he has been at his best this season, but even then, the Storm have played in 13 of the 17 games he has played in.
His combinations with Cameron Munster, Ryan Papenhuyzen, and Harry Grant as the 'new' big four in the Victorian capital just work. They are always there, they read each other well, and they are dangerous.
But it's Hughes' kicking game that will need to set him apart this weekend.
The Sharks have proven time and time again that they can defend their line, but the Storm brings a different threat. If the black, white, and blue can't find a way to even out possession and territory, they will lose.
It's really that simple. So much of that equation comes down to Hughes, his management of the team, and his kicking game.
There are undoubtedly questions regarding his wrist heading into the game, and if the Sharks don't direct about 80 per cent of their attack directly at him, the coaches, and opposition halfback Nicho Hynes must come in for serious questioning, but if Hughes withstands the contact, the physicality and direct attack, then he will do what he does.
The Storm might have been clunky this year, but you feel that won't matter all that much in this likely low-scoring game.
It's going to be a battle of willpower and grind.
Hughes is the best halfback in the game at leading that, and he will determine whether Melbourne is heading back to the grand final or not.
