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Melbourne skipper Jesse Bromwich says he has told Storm party boys Brandon Smith and Cameron Munster they have a lot of work to do to regain trust at the club.
Straight-talking Melbourne skipper Jesse Bromwich has offered the white powder trio some advice on the only way to get back into the Storm's good books.
Star five-eighth Cameron Munster, Brandon Smith and second rower Chris Lewis were filmed partying post-season with white powder in a hotel room and were dealt various punishments.
Smith recently compounded the damage with an explosive podcast in which he said the club had a "massive drinking culture" and spoke of his desire to win a premiership with the Sydney Roosters.
While the players have all apologised, Bromwich, speaking from personal experience, says hard work is the only way to repay Melbourne for their disappointing antics.
In 2017 Bromwich, while on New Zealand duty, was embroiled in his own cocaine scandal outside a Canberra nightclub which saw him lose the Test captaincy and banned by the Storm for two games.
A remorseful Bromwich then worked to regain the respect of his teammates with coach Craig Bellamy naming him co-captain in 2021.
He advised the trio to do the same.
"I spoke to the three boys straight away when they were in trouble and told them what to do and the way I dealt with things, which was purely through hard work and actions ," Bromwich said.
"People can get up and talk about things as much as they want but if you're putting it into actions and we can see that's happening you will be OK."
The veteran prop said Munster looked to be making inroads after returning for pre-season training in tip-top condition, while hooker Smith had the most ground to make up.
"More so for the fans and our owners and the people who really care about this club like the ex-players - he's got a lot of trust to win back," Bromwich said of 25-year-old Smith.
"He's made it very clear that he cares very deeply for this club and he's going to do everything he can to win back that trust.
"I think his strength is that he's able to go out there and show everyone how much things mean because he's such a strong player and strong personality around the club.
"I think he got knocked down a few pegs and hopefully he can stay down there for a little bit."
Bromwich is recovering from clean-out surgery on both elbows but is hopeful of being fit to resume team training in early January.
With front-row teammate Nelson Asofa-Solomona still sidelined by his refusal to get vaccinated, Bromwich said the Storm were looking to put a turbulent off-season behind them.
The Storm at least had some good news Thursday by re-signing major sponsor RedZed in the biggest deal in the club's history.
"It's just been a very difficult off-season," Bromwich said.
"We've had meeting and discussions and apologies but it's very important for us as a team to put all of that behind us soon and put all of our energy into the pre-season."
