The NRL Breakdown: Melbourne Storm into Grand Final as Craig Bellamy’s key gambits pay off
Melbourne Storm celebrate a try against Sydney Roosters
Melbourne, as expected, will contest next week’s NRL Grand Final after turning over the Sydney Roosters 46-18 on home turf at AAMI Park.
Jahrome Hughes, as expected, was the best player on the ground and it will be a minor miracle if anyone else wins the Dally M Medal on Wednesday.
The Kiwi got a hat trick, each try coming at decisive moments to wrest momentum from the Roosters. He was ably assisted by Ryan Papenhuyzen, who did much to underline just how back he is after years injury with what was his best performance since smashing his patella in two late in the 2022 season.
Cameron Munster, who had been quiet, twisted the knife late on with two of his own. Easts were outsiders, but had ample chances early on to upset the Storm, only for an uncharacteristic outbreak of timidity.
They will point to several key decisions going against them, not least a sin bin not called on Hughes that could have seen the Storm reduced to 11 inside the first five minutes and a second half knock-on that went unpunished, gifting Melbourne a try and halting any chance of a comeback.
The pre-match firework smoke had not receded by the time the on-field fireworks began.
For the second Roosters match in a row, there was a knockout on the first carry and, this time, it was one of their own.
Lindsay Collins found himself so dazed by the early contact from Nelson Asofa-Solomona that he played the ball facing the wrong direction.
Replays showed that it was illegal contact, so Nelson sat down for ten minutes and may well miss next week’s showpiece. Collins was removed permanently.
Another penalty followed for a ball steal, then Hughes was very lucky to avoid another bin after taking out Angus Crichton while chasing a kick.
The Roosters showed respect by taking the two, but it wasn’t earned. This wasn’t a game they win based on defence, and with a man in the bin, Melbourne were there to be had.
The ease with which Easts were able to strip the Storm for numbers in good ball for their opening try in the ninth minute was there for all to see, but only further underlined the folly of not going for it earlier.
Joseph Suaalii missed the kick from the touchline, and six points from ten minutes with a man up was a poor return. Melbourne had touched the ball just twice.
Within three minutes, the Storm were level. One attack, one try.
That score came from Papenhuyzen going straight at Luke Keary with men in motion, forcing the halfback wide and burning the man on the inside.
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The second came the same way, in the same fashion: off the ball movement to set up a favourable match-up. This was Craig Bellamy genius, empowering his best players by getting all the other blokes to do simple, repeatable tasks.
Only Papenhuyzen was ever going to get it, but the decoys did everything possible to implant the idea that something else was going on. It wasn’t. By half-time, the Storm had run 22 decoys in front of the ball and none behind.
Bellamy’s gambit for years has been to have the bulk of his salary cap in a limited number of elite players and fill out the rest of the team with solid guys who can follow instruction. If you’ve ever heard the phrase ‘licence’ in relation to the Storm, this is it.
That was played out all over AAMI Park. There was collectivity and clear video work done to target the area around Keary, but ultimately, it was left to the big names to go win it. Papenhuyzen did his bit, then Hughes, then Munster.
So what of the Roosters? Losing Collins in the first tackle obviously doesn’t help, but there were crucial errors of judgement too.
There was a moment to be grasped in the first ten, but they were timid. They played the sensible game by taking a penalty goal, but the match situation should have dictated otherwise.
It was ironic that a Storm penalty goal early in the second half provoked almost the exact same turnaround, with Easts able to put on quick points. It did beg the question of what they might have done had they applied the same endeavour earlier on.
Across the season, both sides have averaged 29 points a game, and though the finals tend to be tighter, the chances of this being a low scoring match were always slim.
Once Hughes and Papenhuyzen got a sniff, that was it. The regret for the Roosters is that they let it happen.
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