I will go out on a limb (and you can laugh if it breaks on the weekend): Melbourne Storm will beat Manly Sea Eagles on Sunday. Here’s why.
Not only are the minor premiers, in commentator-speak, in the kind of form it takes to win Grand Finals but they have fallen into some of the key situations it takes to win grand finals.
Manly may have the halfback, the fullback, the forward pack, and the outgoing legend in Steve Menzies and key situations of their own. And, yes, sometimes it does take losing one to win one.
Melbourne have at least an equal quality halfback-fullback-forward pack combination, the rage of Cameron’s Smith’s suspension (hell hath no fury like a champion team scorned) and a soon-to-be Supercoach in Craig Bellamy.
Importantly, though, they have demolished one team in the Sharks, had a good, tough confidence-boosting win against Brisbane, and they have already lost in this year’s finals series.
It is this combination that will deny the ‘Beaver’ the send-off that Glenn Lazarus, Paul Harragon (if you count the split 1997 season), Terry Lamb, Mal Meninga and Royce Simmons before him enjoyed: winning the premiership as captain in their final season.
You could argue it was their ‘time’, as players and teams.
I would argue they were champions in champion teams with many mitigating factors affecting their results.
The Storm will become the first team since Brisbane in 1997-98 (if you count the split season) to win back-to-back titles.
They will surpass the Roosters of the early 2000s and the Manly of the late 90s and mirror the Raiders’ achievement of the ’89-90-91 (Canberra having won their first two).
Fairytales come true occasionally, but reality is true more often.
Melbourne to win in league’s 100th year.
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