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The Manly Sea Eagles will be desperate to claim their first top four scalp of the season when they clash against reigning premiers the Melbourne Storm in a Saturday night blockbuster. Join us for live scores and commentary from 7.30pm AEST.
One of the NRL’s great rivalries resumes tonight as Manly hosts Melbourne at a packed Brookvale Oval.
Earlier this year, Melbourne and Manly played out a golden point draw at AAMI Park and a tight contest should once again be expected here.
The Sea Eagles are coming off a solid win over Canberra last week while Melbourne piled on the points in the second half of their 64-4 victory over Parramatta.
With the finals just around the corner, tonight’s match presents an appetizing preview of what to expect come September.
Prediction
This is a very important game for Manly, given that they are yet to defeat any team currently ranked inside the top four.
In the five matches they have played against top four opposition thus far, the Sea Eagles have lost 4 games and drawn 1.
The Sea Eagles have tasted defeat at the hands of the Rabbitohs and Roosters and managed to draw with Melbourne.
The Storm’s record against top four opposition however is superb this season. They have defeated South Sydney twice this year to go along with a victory over the Roosters and a draw against Manly.
Such performances continue to highlight the fact that Melbourne generally play their best football when faced with class opposition, and they should once again be expected to play their best tonight.
There are some terrific match-ups that fans can look forward to tonight with Brett Stewart squaring off against Billy Slater.
In the halves, Daly Cherry-Evans and Kieran Foran line up against Storm stars Cooper Cronk and Brett Finch.
The battle of the no. 9’s should also be enticing with QLD Origin representatives Matt Ballin and Cameron Smith facing one another in a key duel between two of the game’s best hookers.
Overall, both these sides are fairly evenly matched so we should expect a cracking contest played at a finals like intensity.
Given Melbourne’s strong record against top four opposition this season, the Storm may once again do enough to secure victory in an absorbing contest.
Storm by 4