Why Melbourne Storm will win the premiership

17 March, 2017 The81stMinute 0 Comments 1 category

BY CURTIS WOODWARD

This may sound strange for a team that includes Cameron Smith, Cooper Cronk and Billy Slater but if the Melbourne Storm have wingers Suliasu Vunivalu and Josh Addo-Carr fit for the playoffs, the Storm will win the 2017 premiership. Yes the grand final – the whole box and dice.

But only on the provision that Slater is there with them.

If you get a chance go back and watch Thursday night’s clash between the Storm and the visiting Brisbane Broncos. From the moment Slater came onto the field in his return match, Melbourne looked a far more dangerous outfit. With all due respect to Cameron Munster, who is already a star in his own right, Slater’s combination with Vunivalu and Addo-Carr seemed to give the purple pride of Victoria another dimension.

Sure Slater was rusty as he frantically tried to make up for two lost seasons but all the signs were there.

It’s an obvious thing to say considering all that he’s done in the game and we know what an awesome player he is but Slater is the missing link. Scratch that, Slater is the link.

The Storm made it all the way to the 2016 grand final with Munster at the back and Vunivalu and Marika Koroibete on the flanks. Without any doubt, that is a world-class back three. Munster will play State of Origin, perhaps even represent his country but the element missing has always been Slater.

Watch Thursday’s night game again. Everything comes off the back of Slater even when the opposition is working it out from their own end. The Storm forwards shoot up and dominate the Broncos and force a rushed kick from Ben Hunt or Anthony Milford. Then all hell breaks loose. You can see the energy, the spark. Slater’s ability to create chaos and do it with the ball-playing ability of most good halfbacks would send shivers down the spines of opposition coach’s right across the game. Defenders immediately focus on trying to shut down Slater but with a twist and a step he can link with Vunivalu or Addo-Carr.

 

 

Here’s the problem for other coaches. Attempting to shut down Slater’s time with the ball is futile because any kind of clearing kick gives him momentum anyway, spending all your time trying to stop Slater then brings Vunivalu and Addo-Carr into the action and if they don’t make a clean break themselves, a half break means a quick play-the-ball, an offload or conceding a penalty.

How do you beat speed and how do you stop speed when it’s mixed with the brains of Slater and his two bazookas in Vunivalu and Addo-Carr?

But wait, there’s more.

The back three have started the set like a house on fire. They’ve got the quick play-the-ball and Melbourne are already on their own 40. Enter Cameron Smith. You know him, right? That future Immortal the Storm has playing out of hooker? Smith takes over and picks at the defensive line, teasing, weaving his web. Sending chargers into any hole he sees fit. Then he runs himself. The next time he finds Jesse Bromwich short or Cronk out the back. Wave after wave.

Then there’s Cronk.

The halfback with a bag full of cherries to put everything on top. If they need a repeat set, Cronk dinks the kick in-goal. If he wants to find one of his fringe runners, he puts the ball on their chest. A cross-field kick for his outside backs? Sure.

Some might have you believe that a game of rugby league is won on a field 100 metres long between thirteen men on either side of the paddock.

Playing the Storm is a fight won and lost with Slater and it continues on every play thereafter, up and down the field, over and over again.

Vunivalu has been ruled out for four weeks after hurting his shoulder in the win over Brisbane but will be back before you know it.

And if Slater and Addo-Carr are there when he returns – there’s no doubt they’ll become the most potent threesome in the NRL and it’s all because of Billy Slater.

@woodward_curtis

Tags:
Category: Feature Story

Related Posts