Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy is adamant there’s no lingering bad blood between he and Michael Maguire over a recent spat as he attempts to maintain a perfect winning record against his former deputy.
The two coaches will come up against each other for the fifth time when Bellamy’s defending champions face Maguire’s second-placed South Sydney in Friday’s qualifying final at ANZ Stadium.
Bellamy said on Tuesday the pair hadn’t spoken since exchanging words when the Storm hosted Souths at AAMI Park in round 21 in early August.
Then Maguire reportedly accused the Storm of leaking a story about Souths employing a Brazilian ju jitsu expert as part of their coaching staff.
Bellamy was believed to be upset over the accusations but said that the matter had been sorted out.
“We had a bit of an issue there, we had a discussion, we sorted it out, shook hands,” he said.
“It wasn’t a big issue but it was something that probably had to be mentioned, it was between ourselves so it’s business as usual.
“We’re good mates, I’m sure we’ll catch up after the game.”
Maguire spent five years as an assistant coach to Bellamy at the Storm and their history goes right back to their playing days at Canberra.
Bellamy is yet to lose to Maguire, having won all four games over the past two years.
On the two occasions the sides met this season, the Storm won 17-10 at ANZ Stadium and 26-8 at AAMI Park but Bellamy isn’t one for the history books.
“We don’t take that into account at all, that’s history. What happens on Friday night is what counts, not what happened two or three years ago.”
He felt that the Rabbitohs, who played three weeks of finals last year, would be better for the experience.
The Storm are set to start with Brett Finch at five-eighth ahead of England international Gareth Widdop, who made his return from a dislocated hip through the Queensland Cup on Sunday.
Widdop, however, will play if Finch doesn’t recover sufficiently from a sternoclavicular joint injury.
Bellamy said his side would have to lift to win the title but felt they weren’t alone.
“The top four sides, we’ve all been a bit inconsistent in the last month; the Roosters lost two before they won the minor premiership.
“We’ve all been a bit scratchy but those four sides have got a lot of experience so you’d think those players are going to lift at this time of year.”