Four things we learnt from the NRL preliminary finals

Brendon, doesn't that outline what TB is saying? Lets see the Storm when Cronk leaves and then Slater and then Smith, they will end up a very ordinary team. This is the last 'throw of the dice' for the Storm and if they don't win the GF this year, then it could be another 5 years or more before they do anything.

I wouldn't call it a poor decision based on what they knew at the time. Hunt was one of the form halves of the competition, locked into a contract and playing well alongside Milford. There was no way the Broncos could have known that the Dragons would throw a million dollar contract at him. In fact, it is still hard to believe.

It's actually been six years since the salary cap punishment (2011-17). The Storm have won one premiership. Slater missed two seasons but Cronk broke his arm in Origin one and returned by Origin three. So he was out for less than six weeks, in which time the Storm would have had at least one bye. Finucane and Ado-Carr weren't cast offs. And while Bellamy has done amazing things squeezing every bit of talent out of guys like Ryles and Blair he didn't turn them into stars. The Storm definitely have a fantastic record which will be made much better if they win a premiership on Sunday.

Should it? Of course if you player fewer minutes in a game it's expected that your per minute output is greater than someone playing the full 80. EG Jensen from the Cowboys is averaging more metres per minute than Taumalolo in the semi finals. Does that mean his contribution carrying the ball is greater?

Yes I agree rm The Storm should be congratulated for what they have done for Rugby League in Vic. Cameron Smith often appears on AFL shows .They have made the back page..Billy is doing a good job with his Billy's Buddies.Schoolboy footie is going ahead They have over 20k members and crowds have been good. There are now a lot of afl people who have two teams their afl team plus the Storm. To do all this in a afl mad state is commendable. I can't understand why true nrl fans aren't happy the code is expanding. It is after all supposed to be national rugby league

The difference should be calculat d on game time rather than games,of which Granville has 23 minutes more...

Yeah thought that myself. He perfectly complimented the Ipswich style being super quick, smart and agile. You can only assume Bennett told him to bide his time. Disappointing we didn't get to see him in the NRL more but the Super League seems to suit him.

First of all there are 8 other teams in sydney with roosters being possibly most hated. Second Canterbury won from outside the top 4 in 1995. As stated above the 2015 grand final had a good crowd.

Yeah this is a great take- closely mirrors my thoughts on the weekend that was! The Storm cannot be stopped!!

As I said, they have to win it first. Despite my comments I'm not anti-Storm. While I'll be cheering for the Cowboys if the Storm win I'll certainly recognise it as a deserved win for undoubtedly the best team of the year. They've been great to watch - exhilarating when it all clicks. The game against Brisbane is one example and there was a game against the Cowboys (I think) where after a tough opening 30 mins or so, Slater laid on two beautifully orchestrated tries right before half time. They have an admirable record. It's up there with the best. The difference is though, I don't remember Roosters or Manly fans delivering this "all hail our franchise if we win" message that seems to be an ongoing theme with some Storm supporters. Good luck for the weekend mate. I hope you enjoy the week and the game and party hard if the Storm get up!

The decision to let Ash Taylor go is poor in hindsight, now that Hunt has been poached. Milf and Nikorima are both running halves, not organising, kicking halves. They would love to have Taylor now, that's for sure.

Yeah fair enough. I probably overstated the McCullough case in response to the author labelling letting Granville go "a rookie mistake". Someone below has brought up some attacking stats between the two. There's no doubt Granville is a superior attacking player but when you look at the "twice as many" stats on a per game basis (noting that Granville has played 23 games and McCullough 18) Granvilles contribution isn't massively greater. EG Try assists. Granville has 10 at 0.4 per game, McCullough 5 at 0.3 per game. Interestingly McCullough runs for 45 metres per game and kicks for 98. Granville runs for 29 and kicks for 13. Those numbers dont necessarily reflect quality and are attributable to the difference in game plan between the two teams but I think show that perhaps McCullough isn't as limited in attack as is often suggested. There's a vast gulf between their defensive capabilities. McCullough makes 48 tackles per game missing 2.3. Granville makes 31 tackles missing 2.7. Granville is a fine player and he's very exciting to watch but if I were building a team or picking an origin side I'd have McCullough ahead of him. I'm comfortable with people thinking differently to that but sticking with McCullough over an untested Granville was hardly a rookie mistake. With respect to the Judge ? the fact that words like unimaginative are used to describe McCullough are part of the reason why I still think he's grossly under rated.

Yeah, it really sucked having Granville and Parcel come through at the same time behind McCullough. Would have loved to keep em both but they'd only ever have been replacements, though I do think Parcell may regret moving to manly as early as he did

I have some mates in Victoria who are passionate AFL fans and I think if you asked any of them years ago what they thought of League they would have made some disparaging remark about sniffing bums and then something about the Wallabies losing the 2003 Rugby World Cup and John Hopoate. Now, they all follow the Storm along with their AFL teams, they go to matches and buy Storm jerseys. In their own methodical way, the Storm have ground their way into the Victorian sports market and won for themselves a loyal following. Even while they were dismantling my team on the weekend, I couldn't help but admire what they have achieved when I considered the big crowd and great atmosphere that seemed to be there at the game. Another big game for them this weekend, and as I mentioned to TB I think this is potentially the most important GF the Storm have had in this era. Win and it cements an excellent legacy of success. It'll take some winning though. I couldn't be more impressed by what the Cowboys have done this year and this Finals in particular. 2015 aside, this is the most excited I have been about a Grand Final for a very, very long time.

Hey Barry, re Granville. I'd have to respectfully disagree with a few of your points there. I think Granville is a superior player to McCullough, who is kind of like the Dallas Johnson of No. 9's. Absolutely nothing wrong with that, Dallas is a legend of the game and having a player who is a great defender is a crucial component of any teams structure. That being said, his attacking ability is rather limited. Granville has double his try assists. McCullough does have a superior long kicking game, but Granville has a better short kicking game. I think McCullough is an unimaginative player, whereas Granville is always looking around the ruck to seize an opportunity. Whether it be his subtle changes of direction to get markers interested, picking the right time to run, stabbing in a grubber kick close to the line, he is a far more creative rake. I personally think Granville delivers quality pill, see the ball for Morgan on Saturday. His service is top notch, I'd have to watch the two side by side to really rate it. The only thing that McCullough does have over him is that he is a gun tackler and does play 80 mins. However Granville has a great tackling style, and he often forces an error. He didn't miss a tackle against the Roosters, and he'll need to be perfect again to beat the Storm.

TB , points one and two are spot on . Surely 25000 in Townsvillle is the same as 25, 000 in Sydney . And does the AFL compare their crowds to the 150,000 that turn up for Kim Jong Un at that stadium in Pyongyang .? Didn't think so. Granville v Macca. I tend to agree up to a point . Jakey is a good fit for our team . We need the flair . We don't have a Milford or Nikorima type and Jake gives us some real thrust from dh. Macca , better in an overall sense but I would not swap Jake for him for any money. As for the Storm well I am a forgiving type .They have been the most successful club of the modern era in my opinion. Yeah they are a bit light on for GF wins , but their record of making finals /GF's is unsurpassed. I hope though mthat record of GF under achievement goes on a little longer.

Nah Broncos biggest mistake in regards to hookers was letting go of Matt Parcell. They should have kept him around but let him go to explore greener pastures where I am lead to believe he has been awarded as the best hooker in the Super League. Not sure of too many hookers who can score 5 tries in a game at any level, let alone QLD Cup. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixZps3VsifE

While I was singing the praises of the Storm in my earlier comment, I agree that this Grand Final is a very important one for them to win. From 2006 - 2017 they will have appeared in 7 Grand Finals. Lose and it is 3 wins and 4 losses. Considering two of those wins were later stripped because of the salary cap rorting, it doesn't really add up to the dominance their home and away record suggests. One legitimate Premiership in that whole time would not be a good return for a team with Smith, Slater, Cronk and Bellamy (along with the other great players they have had along the journey). It all helps make for what should be a fascinating Grand Final.

Good points Alice. As RM said above pretty difficult to choose between Granville and Mcullough. If you're a defensive minded coach then Granville doesn't get to play. I think it made sense to let him go. Ash Taylor is another case in point. Just goes to show the abundance of talent available to the Broncos. I've loved every minute of the Cowboys resurgence, probably not as much if they continue it this weekend but won't begrudge them the title if they do take it as that spirit within that team is something else. Absolutely gutsy performances down to the last man on the bench. Form team of the finals series. As for the Melbourne Storm...couldn't agree more! ..but I may a tiny little bit biased.

It's no coincidence the year Granville joined the club was the year the Cows won their first premiership..he was a huge coup and the missing piece they needed..He's an impact player with different,yet far more potent skills than McCullough..he plays the game much more intensively and aggressively beyond his physical endurance or care of pacing himself hence the need for the coach to spell him during the game..yet still has double the tries,double the offloads and more than double the try assists of Macca...Cows best buy of the last 5 years no doubt..