Melbourne Storm receive major Cameron Munster boost amid Nelson Asofa-Solomona blow

Cameron Munster is set to make his NRL return after being named in the Storm's starting side for Thursday night's blockbuster against Brisbane. The five-eighth had been viewed as a day-by-day proposition as he recovers from a troublesome groin injury that has kept him out of Melbourne's opening three games of the season.

Storm football manager Frank Ponissi said that he was 'no certainty' to be back in action this week after completing Monday's training session. "We will see how he pulls up tomorrow from training today. That is the key," Ponissi told AAP on Monday.

"Today is the hardest he has gone. Whether he plays or he needs another week, we will just have to wait and see. He is not a certainty. All along we have said he has to get back to full training. He has been running for a while. It is just how he pulls up from the runs afterwards."

However, after pulling up well from yesterday's training run, the No.6 has been named to make his return. Munster has been a thorn in Brisbane's side for the best part of a decade and he is a large reason as to why the Broncos haven't won a game in Melbourne since 2016.

The Storm's ranks will also be bolstered by the return of Jahrome Hughes from suspension and Christian Welch from concussion. Tyran Wishart will drop to the bench to accommodate the half's return to the side, while Jonah Pezet falls out of the 17

Craig Bellamy has also chosen not to pick Storm enforcer Nelson Asofa-Solomona despite him successfully returning from a hamstring injury in the State Cup last week. The prop racked up 48 minutes for the Bears last weekend but Melbourne have decided against rushing him back into first grade, instead letting him build up his fitness in reserve grade.

Andrew Johns warns Melbourne Storm to not rush back Cameron Munster

Newcastle Knights legend Andrew Johns has cautioned Melbourne not to rush Munster back into the side as he looks to shake a niggling groin issue. The crafty five-eighth hasn't played since he slipped in the shower and aggravated the injury during the club's pre-season trip to Fiji but is set to make his return on Thursday.

The rugby league immortal dealt with a troublesome groin himself during his playing career and warned the five-eighth that if he doesn't make sure he is 100 per cent before coming back it could end his career. "It's gonna be so tough for him. He's at that age. He's 30," Johns said on Wide World of Sports' Immortal Behaviour last month.

"And Munster being Munster, I was in the sheds (last week) and I was talking to him about it and he was skylarking a bit. I said, 'Mate, this will finish you. If you don't get this right, this will finish you'. I think he realises how serious it is because it is. It can just come and go for no reason."

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Johns has urged the five-eighth to see Sydney-based osteopath Kay Macpherson - a woman who fixed his groin injury some two decades ago. The NRL immortal described groin injuries as "the most debilitating injury" and says they continue to linger if not treated properly.

"It was awful – I couldn't get out of bed in the morning. I couldn't stand and put shorts or jeans on, I had to sit down," he said. "Coughing and sneezing was like a form of torture. It travels – sometimes (the pain) is in your belly, then it's on the attachment and then it's elsewhere. Then you feel like you're right, then you start running, and then for no rhyme or reason, you wake up one morning and just go, 'Oh, I can't get up'."

with AAP