Nicholls: ‘It doesn’t get much better’

Image: File photo

Dolphins Prop Mark Nicholls has played in a few blockbusters during his career, but he reckons you can’t get much better than playing the Melbourne Storm at Suncorp Stadium on Good Friday.

The home side are coming off a 30-12 win over reigning premiers Penrith Panthers during round six on April 10, but face Melbourne Storm, who are second on the ladder, at Suncorp Stadium on Good Friday (kick off 8pm).

The Dolphins are presently 14^th on the ladder but have won the past two games after a bumpy start to the 2025 season.

Nicholls says the win over Penrith has set his side up for the round-seven challenge.

“It was a good result for us, obviously, beating Penrith. They’ve been the benchmark for a few years. We get another good test this weekend … we play a team that’s been consistently good for a long, long time. I think the boys are excited to have another test, and probably a step up,” he says.

“I think generally, as a team, we had a bit of a disrupted start … we were slow out of the blocks. We felt, as a team and as a pack, we were improving and taking the right steps each game, we just weren’t getting the result.

“It’s a big test this Friday up against, probably with the Bulldogs, the (in) form team of the comp. We’ll have to take another couple of steps forward and obviously we’ve got to keep improving if we’re going to do what we want to do in this comp.

“I think as long as we keep turning up to training and are trying to get better and keep improving in our performance, hopefully the results will keep going our way,”

“There’s probably a lot of individuals, myself included, that were disappointed with how we started the year in the first couple of games. But most of the boys have improved every week … the pack’s improved and the team’s improved.

“We can’t go back, but we’ve still got 20-something rounds to keep improving and keep seeing what we’re capable of.”

Nicholls says the Storm have been a benchmark for 20 years, with a classy spine, hard-working forward pack and quick outside backs.

“It’s like the ideal footy team but we go pretty good as well, when we’re on. That’s, I guess, the goal for us, to turn up and match them in the middle, play our footy and hopefully as we saw on the weekend … (if) Hammer can get three tries and we’ll be right,” he says.

Nicholls believes Melbourne’s squad will deal with the loss of Jahrome Hughes, if he can’t play, with an entrenched ‘next-man-up’ mentality.

“If anything, I think it will give someone else an opportunity and they’ll want to put their best foot forward.”

The 35-year-old says he has not made a decision about his playing future beyond the 2025 season.

“Probably at this stage, I don’t feel like I want to retire but it’s a long year so we’ll just see how that plays out,” he explains.

“I think the club’s pretty comfortable with that.”

He adds he will see how he goes this season with injury, and how his body is feeling, before making a decision.

“I’m still enjoying coming to training and competing and playing footy obviously is the fun part … for a lot of people they say they knew it was time (to retire) when they got sick of training. I’m not at that point yet.”

Nicholls says he will chat with the club, perhaps, halfway through the season to see where things are at.

“I said this last year, if the club feels like there’s some younger guys coming through that are ready to step up, then that’s that. I’m pretty content with how my career’s gone. By the same token, I’m still enjoying what I do and I still love competing. I’d be silly to walk away from that,” he explains.

When asked why he’d be happy to finish his career at the Dolphins, after playing at three other clubs, he says the lifestyle the Redcliffe Peninsula offers suits him, his wife and their two young daughters.

“We’ve loved living in Redcliffe and the community and the club. We’re building a house at the moment … I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon,” he says.

Tickets are still available for the Dolphins V Storm game. Visit the website for details.