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Melbourne players say while they will miss the presence of banned prop Nelson Asofa-Solomona, they have the depth in their pack to cover his absence.
While disappointed to lose man mountain Nelson Asofa-Solomona, Melbourne are vowing their "next man up" mentality will ensure the prop's role is ably covered in Sunday's grand final against Penrith.
Asofa-Solomona failed in his bid to have a grade three careless high tackle charge downgraded at the NRL judiciary, meaning he will be on the sidelines for the Accor Stadium premiership decider.
The Kiwi Test heavyweight was charged following a tackle on Lindsay Collins in the opening minute of the preliminary final at AAMI Park which ended the Sydney Roosters prop's game.
Standing two metres tall and weighing 125kg, Asofa-Solomona is a battering ram for the Storm, skittling players with his charging runs.
He's also able to cause headaches for the defence with his offloads.
Melbourne playmaker Cameron Munster conceded the absence of the prop was a big loss, literally and figuratively.
"For me, it is a massive loss but we've got some good players coming through, and they can do the role for us," Munster said. "But yeah, he's definitely a big hole.
"He just brings that presence in that middle and definitely brings a lot of aggression, so that will be sorely missed.'
Melbourne skipper Harry Grant also felt for his teammate, who had returned to some of his best form after a slow start to the season which prompted talk he could be traded.
"We know how important he is to our group, he's been so, so good," Grant said.
"I can't speak highly enough of him over the last couple months what he's put into our team, what he's put into the club and he's really reaped the rewards and we've reaped the rewards on the field."
Melbourne will name their squad later on Tuesday with Tui Kamikamica likely to come into the starting front-row, with Lazarua Vaalepu or Joe Chan likely to join Christian Welch on the bench.
Josh King, also a starting prop, backed any of the players in the Storm squad to cover the loss of Asofa-Solomona, who missed selection in the first five games of the season as Melbourne only lost once.
"We've used a lot of players this year, a lot of forwards, and we've got some really good experienced boys on the bench (Kamikamica and Welch) that aren't even in the side as well," King
"Whoever comes in will be able to do a job just as well as he did."
Welch was only used for eight minutes in their win over the Roosters and said he would play whatever role was required in the final.
The 30-year-old watched Melbourne's 2017 grand final victory from the stands - albeit due to a knee reconstruction rather than suspension - and said he felt for his teammate.
"From my experience, in 2017, it's a very bittersweet feeling," Welch told AAP.
"You're so pumped for your teammates but you're pretty devastated you're not out there achieving that ultimate glory that as a player that you dream of.
"But Nelson is a real team-first guy."