NRL QUALIFYING FINAL BETWEEN MELBOURNE AND PARRAMATTA
WHEN: Saturday, 7.50pm AEST
WHERE: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
THE FORM
* Melbourne (second, 16 wins, four losses). Despite a mid-year relocation to Queensland, the Storm have lost just twice in their past 14 games but one of those defeats was a 14-0 loss to the Eels.
* Parramatta (third, 15 wins, five losses). The early competition frontrunners needed a narrow 28-24 win over Wests Tigers to secure a top four spot last weekend and defence has been an issue in recent weeks for Brad Arthur’s team.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
* Overall: Played 37, Melbourne 23, Parramatta 14
* In finals: Melbourne 6 wins – Parramatta 0 wins
* Last time: Round 15, 2020: Parramatta 14 bt Melbourne 0 at Bankwest Stadium
THE COACHES
* Melbourne’s Craig Bellamy will be coaching finals for the 17th time in 18 seasons with the Storm, with 2010 the only year he has missed when his team were unable to play for points due to salary cap breaches.
* Parramatta’s Brad Arthur has won just one of four finals matches as a head coach and has just three wins from 10 matches against Melbourne.
KEY MATCH-UPS
Cameron Smith (Melbourne) v Reed Mahoney (Parramatta)
Melbourne’s veteran captain will be playing his 40th finals match, extending a record he already holds from former teammate Cooper Cronk (38). Smith has won 18 of 21 matches against the Eels over his illustrious career and is the ultimate big occasion player. It’s a big ask for Parramatta young gun Reed Mahoney to stop Smith having a match-winning influence over the game in the 22-year-old’s third finals appearance.
Cameron Munster (Melbourne) v Dylan Brown (Parramatta)
After undergoing ankle surgery, Eels five-eighth Dylan Brown has been named to play with coach Brad Arthur confident he’ll add some running spark to Parramatta’s attack. Brown has missed the past four matches with a syndesmosis injury and his ability to get up to speed will be vital. He’ll also have to be on his game defensively against Storm No.6 Munster, who has 13 line-break assists for Melbourne this season.
Ryan Papenhuyzen (Melbourne) v Clint Gutherson (Parramatta)
No-one is more vital to the Eels’ attack than their captain Clint Gutherson. The fullback leads the Eels with 18 linebreak assists and 17 try assists and has made 3318 metres in the regular season, the third highest tally in the NRL behind Roger Tuivasa-Sheck (3482) and James Tedesco (3355). Storm speedster Papenhuyzen has also had a stellar year, with seven try assists in his past three games and at least one linebreak for the past seven matches.
THE STATS
* Melbourne are chasing a 19th straight win in Queensland, a run that includes seven consecutive victories at Suncorp Stadium.
* Parramatta have won just two of seven finals matches outside NSW, including four losses to the Storm in that figure.
THE TIP
* Storm by 12