Season 2006 saw the retirement of captain Robbie Kearns and the emergence of talented rookie halfback Cooper Cronk who took over the position from Matt Orford and in addition, the recruitment of hard-man Michael Crocker. The club also moved away from a single captain electing to use a rotating captains policy, in 2006 alone used five Captains including Cameron Smith for the first time. Contrary to expectation, 2006 was a standout year for the Melbourne team, winning their first Minor Premiership. Melbourne only lost four games in the season, making them outright leaders by four wins. They went on to win their two finals matches, and were favourites in the 2006 NRL Grand Final, but lost 15–8 to the Brisbane Broncos, in a match where controversial refereeing decisions against Melbourne caused much media coverage.