- Dolphins have been scored on by a Fullback for the last 4 straight games
- Dolphins have given up a double to an opposition Winger in 4 of 7 games
- Dolphins edge runners have not scored since round 3.
- Outside of 3 tries to 2RFs in the first 3 games, no Dolphins player outside 1-5 has scored this season.
- A Dolphins Centre has scored in every single game so far
- There has not been a single game where at least two outside backs haven’t scored for the Dolphins
- The Storm have been scored on by one player from each side CTW in the last 5 games
- 5 wingers have scored doubles against the Storm in the last 5 games
- The Storm have conceded 19 tries in their last 3 games and scored 7
- Sua Fa’alogo has only not scored in one game so far
- The Storm’s Right side CTW has scored double the amount of tries than the Left (10)
- The Storm have been scored on by a Right side CTW for the last 7 straight games
- The Storm have had 8 tries put through them by Right side edge runners
Analysis:
Bullshit aside, Craig Bellamy is one of the greatest coaches the NRL has ever seen. The man’s achievements at the helm of the Melbourne Storm are too numerous to list, and his fury and passion in the coaching box is legendary. Despite his angry dad facade, there is one thing about the storm that is evident to anybody with eyes; The boys fucking love him.
Now I don’t know if you’ve ever received some hard news about a loved one, punters. I like to think you haven’t and have had a relatively carefree life without having to carry that pain and uncertainty for a suddenly conspicuous period of time, but in case you haven’t; it’s fucked. That kind of shit can cause a weird response from a human being, let alone an entire team of professional sportsmen.
Putting yourself in Bellyache’s shoes for a minute – imagine how hard it would be to have to stand in front of a camera and explain your private health issues to the world. That takes more courage than I think I could ever muster and would have been humiliating and painful as fuck. The Storm would have felt that right alongside him, and that is going to have to come out somewhere.
I can’t bring myself to bet against the boys this week. My own allegiances and Melbourne’s shitty recent form aside, whenever someone has the opportunity to inspire a loved one in a time of hardship, you don’t really want to stand in the way of them.
Now imagine their loved one is one of the greatest coaches to ever live. Yeah…
*UPDATE* Dolphins: Trai Fuller has been shifted to the bench, Herbie Farnworth has moved to Right Centre, Jack Bostock slots in at Left Centre.
Dolphins Try Scorers: Herbie Farnworth/Jack Bostock, Jamayne Isaako/The Hammer, Kulikefu Finefeuiaki
Storm Try Scorers: Sua Fa’alogo, Hugo Peel/Nick Meaney, Jack Howarth/Will Warbrick, Tyran Wishart
Degen Bets: Herbie Farnworth FTS/LTS, Fa’alogo/Warbrick FTS, Fa’alogo/Peel LTS, Isaako/Finifeuiaki LTS, Peel/Warbrick 2+, Farnworth/Isaako 2+
