Storm v Warriors
Telstra Dome
Monday 7pm
THE 2008 debut of Monday Night Football should be a beauty as the reigning champs kick-off their title defence against an imposing yet still unpredictable Warriors’ outfit.
There is something to be said for the battles between these two sides – obviously it’s not classified as a local derby but there is always something extra in the contest.
In 2006 it was the Warriors who ended the Storm’s dream run of consecutive wins at Olympic Park but the Melbourne boys haven’t lost at home since – will they continue the dominance at Telstra Dome?
Last year in round three at Olympic Park the Storm blew the Warriors off the ground early, racing to a 20-0 lead before prevailing 30-12 but it was their gutsy 4-2 win in New Zealand in round 13 without their rep stars that was the catalyst to an even higher level of belief on their way to the premiership.
The Warriors’ pride is still wounded from that encounter and here’s as good a chance as any to make up for it.
The Storm are without Clive Churchill Medallist Greg Inglis and as such are just a tad vulnerable.
They enter the regular season after beating Manly 56-10 before heading to England where they beat Halifax 26-10 before falling to Leeds in the World Club Challenge 11-4.
The Warriors’ pre-season has been far from fruitful. Not only did they fall to Newcastle (22-14) and Manly (24-16) but they lost star player and fullback Wade McKinnon for the season to a knee reconstruction.
Aidan Kirk has good raps on him as a replacement but McKinnon was a focal point on just about everything that was good about the Warriors.
Watch out Storm: There is no substitute for hard work and Warriors’ captain Steve Price will not let reputations of the premiers get in his way of laying a solid platform.
His feats last season were almost superhuman, averaging 201 metres a game in the regular season and constantly helping the Warriors onto the front foot.
With youngster Sam Rapira his partner in crime and Ruben Wiki coming from the bench the front-row prowess of the Kiwi-based side can’t be underestimated.
Watch out Warriors: The Storm are hurting from their World Club Challenge loss but it is skipper Cam Smith with the most to prove in this first round clash.
Smith didn’t make the trip to England for personal reasons and while he would make the same choice again it doesn’t diminish the Golden Boot winner’s desire to get the Storm straight back into the winner’s circle.
Smith was equal second in the NRL last season in dummy-half line breaks but what makes the Test rake so dangerous is his selectivity.
He only runs when it’s most beneficial to do so and the rest of the time he is directing his forwards with aplomb. The sleight of hand and crisp service, combined with clever off-the-ball running lines make the Storm’s ruck the most precise in the business.
Where it will be won: It might seem silly to heap the pressure on one individual but if the Warriors are to compete the first thing they need to do is contain Ryan Hoffman.
Everybody knows the strapping second-row forward is going to run on the edges of the ruck. Everyone knows the Storm are going to set up numerous decoy runners to get him one-on-one with smaller tacklers but last year not many could stop it.
The Warriors need to adjust quickly when the ball goes to the fringes and make sure the smaller defenders aren’t isolated.
If they can do this it will force the Storm to go to their other weapons. With Inglis out, that leaves Billy Slater as the main target. He’ll chime into plays as a second man or chase kicks through the middle of the ruck. If the Warriors can contain these two main areas they’ll have a fighting chance.
The History: Played 19; Storm 10, Warriors 8, drawn 1. The only game between the two teams at Telstra Dome ended in a draw. The Storm have won four of the past five clashes between the sides although the average match result in the past three seasons has been a close 19-15 in the Storm’s favour.
Conclusion: The Storm are nowhere near as dangerous looking as they were last season but they are still a well-drilled professional unit that deserves favouritism.
At home they are extremely difficult to knock off but the Warriors will enter the game with a ‘nothing-to-lose’ attitude and a desire to topple the title holders – something the Storm needs to brace itself for each and every week. Could be close, but stick with the premiers.
Match officials: Referee – Ben Cummins; Sideline Officials – Steve Carrall & Rod Lawrence; Video ref – Chris Ward.
Televised: Foxsports 2 – Live 7pm
Statistics: NRL Stats
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