What time does the NRL grand final start and how can I watch it in Australia?

They have been the two standout teams all year and fans are set to witness what promises to be an epic showdown between minor premiers the Melbourne Storm, and three-time reigning premiers the Penrith Panthers chasing their fourth consecutive NRL grand final win.

The Storm were clinical in dispatching one of the league’s powerhouse clubs, the Sydney Roosters, at home on Melbourne’s AAMI Park on Friday night, before the Panthers eventually wore down a brave Cronulla Sharks outfit with the aid of some Nathan Cleary brilliance.

Both sides booked their spots in the ‘big dance’ but at some cost, with Storm enforcer Nelson Asofa-Solomona staring down the barrel of a suspension that would rule him out of the grand final, and Panthers playmaker, Cleary, leaving the field on Saturday night with an apparent shoulder injury.

Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy said on Friday after the win that he did not believe the Asofa-Solomona tackle warranted a suspension as they weigh up whether or not to fight the four-match suspension offered the Storm front-rower.

“You’d hate to see him miss a big game,” Bellamy said.

“I didn’t think it was a sin bin. Penalty, I thought it was fair enough, but that’s just me.

“I’ve seen it live and seen one replay, and that was my impression … I didn’t think there was a whole lot in it.”

Cleary put on a brave face after the match on Saturday night saying his shoulder injury would not hold him back leading into the grand final.

“It’s all good [shoulder injury], just a little knock at the end but I ended up playing out the next two sets and it felt fine. It was always gonna be one of those things, it probably wasn’t amazing or 100 per cent, but I felt confident.”

“Tonight was fine, I wasn’t even thinking about it. Even after that little incident, I played the next two sets and was sweet.” Cleary added.

The NRL grand final day schedule

7.30pm: NRL grand final - Melbourne Storm vs Penrith Panthers at ACCOR Stadium, Sydney.

Where and when can I watch the NRL grand final day coverage?

The 2024 NRL and NRLW Telstra premiership grand finals will be broadcast exclusively live on Channel 9 and 9Now throughout Australia and internationally.

The NRL grand final kicks off at 7.30pm (AEDT) in New South Wales, 6:30pm (AEDT) in Queensland, 6pm (ACDT) in South Australia and 4.30pm (AWDT) in Western Australia.

The commentary team for the NRL grand final coverage

Nine’s NRL coverage for the grand final features host James Bracey, with an expert panel of NRL premiership winners including Andrew Johns, Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, Phil Gould, Paul Gallen, Brad Fittler, Johnathan Thurston, Darren Lockyer, Paul Vautin and Sonny Bill Williams.

Joining them are international rugby league representatives Ruan Sims and Allana Ferguson, sideline reporters Danika Mason and Emma Lawrence, plus commentators Mathew Thompson, Brenton Speed and Peter Psaltis.

What is the entertainment at ACCOR Stadium on NRL grand final day?

Australian star and enthusiastic rugby league supporter The Kid LAROI will perform as the headline act at this year’s NRL grand final.

“The biggest day in Australian sport just got bigger with the announcement that Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum chart-topping global superstar The Kid LAROI will headline the 2024 NRL and NRLW Telstra Premiership grand final entertainment,” an NRL statement said.

“A proud Kamilaroi man and die-hard South Sydney Rabbitohs fan (The Kid LAROI) grew up in Sydney’s southern suburbs.

“Bursting onto the scene in 2021, The Kid LAROI’s ‘Stay’ and ‘Without You’ combined boast over four billion streams on Spotify and peaked at No.1 in multiple countries including the US.”

Who is favourite to win the NRL grand final and Clive Churchill Medal?

Such is the form of these two great sides that the weight of money can’t split the two teams about starting prices with the bookmakers.

TAB’s odds guru Gerard Daffy says they can’t split the two teams, and in turn, have offered up opening prices of $1.90 for both.

“The Panthers were favourites for most of the year, only wavering slightly when Nathan Cleary was out injured for a while,” Daffy said.

“They are always going to be favourite or equal favourite in the big games because of the Nathan Cleary factor.

“He could come onto the field for the grand final on crutches and the punters would still want to back Penrith, purely because of the aura around him,” Daffy added.

Injuries and suspensions will play a role in the team’s preparations and wily punters will be watching how the week progresses, but at full strength, it appears the two teams cannot be separated.

“You could ask 100 people and I reckon it would be 50/50 at this stage,” Daffy said.

The Clive Churchill Medal for Man of the Match in the NRL grand final is always a hotly contested affair with halfbacks and pivots usually featuring in the favourite markets.

“Cleary is favourite and we expect him to have a stack of support for him to win that medal this week,” Daffy added.

“The interesting thing is, the next three players in the market are all from the Storm - Hughes, Munster and Grant.”

NRL grand final day weather at ACCOR Stadium

The weather on NRL grand final day looks perfect for free-flowing rugby league.

Predictions are for 26 degrees, just over 37 per cent humidity, zero chance of rain and a slight cloud cover.

The wind predictor is for a breeze of 18km/h which should play no factor in the game.

More to come.