MATT Geyer has been given the chance to play out his final season at the Melbourne Storm as the replacement for injured centre Will Chambers, with the veteran utility being named in the starting line-up for this weekend's National Rugby League clash against North Queensland.

Geyer, who has enjoyed playing a utility role for the Storm this year — off the bench when the team is at full-strength — was named ahead of Greg Inglis and Joseph Tomane for the berth at left centre.

Inglis put in a spectacular performance in setting up Queensland's win in the second state-of-origin clash last week when playing centre and there were calls for Bellamy to return the 21-year-old to the position for the Storm following Chambers' season-ending knee injury.

The Storm had several options to cover Chambers and showed this the previous time a full-strength side played — in round 12 against the Bulldogs — when Inglis and Geyer rotated between five-eighth and centre.

Since then, there had been talk that Tomane could be fast-tracked into the position, but Bellamy yesterday said he would take a slower approach with the 18-year-old.

Bellamy said while Inglis' best position at representative level might be in the centres, at the Storm, he had been "five-eighth for 18 months and that's his position now". "I just think that his best position for the Storm at the moment (is five-eighth)," Bellamy said.

But, as he has maintained since he controversially shifted Inglis to pivot at the start of 2007, he was open to returning him to the outside backs if that was the best set-up. Inglis does not play in the traditional five-eighth mould and often spends part of a game in the centres.

"Guys like him can play a few positions," Bellamy said.

He said the team named yesterday for Saturday night's game against the Cowboys at Olympic Park — which has 10 players from the second origin game — could change once he had assessed whether any of the representative stars, who will return to training today, need to rest.

Geyer, who retires at the end of this season, will not take his selection in the position for granted.

"I've been given first shot and if I play well, I'd imagine I'd stay there. If I don't, the coach will look for alternatives," Geyer said.