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Melbourne Storm backrower Eli Katoa will miss the complete 2026 rugby league season as he focuses on rehabilitation at home in Victoria, after returning from a prolonged stay in New Zealand where he underwent brain surgery.

Sequence of Events

The 25-year-old sustained three head impacts during a single afternoon while playing for Tonga in a Pacific Championship fixture against New Zealand. This led to seizures while on the sideline, requiring urgent medical care.

A medical operation to relieve a brain bleed left Katoa in the hospital and temporarily grounded to his club base.

The club announced this week that Katoa has finally returned home and is on the mend, having also made a brief visit to a local medical facility.

“His health and recovery are our top concern,” stated Storm CEO a team official. “We are thrilled to have him back home and under the care of our club doctor and specialist physicians.”

The Road to Recovery

Rodski added that the athlete is improving each day and is looking forward to continuing his rehabilitation from home.

However, the executive confirmed that there is no timeframe for his return to health or a potential return to training.

“After discussions with our doctor and neuro specialists, Eli won't be back to training during the preseason and won’t be available for the upcoming season,” he emphasized. “He has a long road ahead in his recovery, and his primary goal will be on returning to full health prior to contemplating a potential comeback to training.”

Rodski concluded by noting that Eli is a highly valued and respected member of our team and organization, and that the entire club will support him fully and support him through his recovery.

Broader Context

The NRL is currently finalizing its inquiry into the events that resulted in Katoa’s surgery.

The powerful forward, who was named in the competition’s team of the year at the recent Dally M awards, appeared to suffer a concussion during the pregame routine for the Pacific Championship match.

However, he was allowed to play in the game and endured two additional blows to the head before coming off in the second half.

His state worsened rapidly, and he needed medical oxygen on the sideline before being taken off on a stretcher.

The league has sought to tackle issues around concussions in the game in recent seasons, implementing stricter enforcement on dangerous contact and expanding the post-concussion stand down period for injured athletes.