Check out the match preview and prediction for the round 22 clash between the Storm and Dragons.
MATCHDAY NEWS
MATCHDAY SCHEDULE
Melbourne Storm Vs St George Illawarra Dragons
Venue: AAMI Park, Melbourne
Date: Saturday, August 3, 5:30 pm
MATCHDAY TEAM NEWS
Storm: 1. Ryan Papenhuyzen, 2. William Warbrick, 3. Jack Howarth, 4. Nick Meaney, 5. Grant Anderson, 6. Cameron Munster, 7. Jahrome Hughes, 8. Tui Kamikamica, 9. Harry Grant, 10. Josh King, 11. Shawn Blore, 12. Eliesa Katoa, 13. Trent Loiero, 14. Tyran Wishart, 15. Lazarus Vaalepu, 16. Nelson Asofa-Solomona, 17. Alec MacDonald, 18. Tristan Powell, 19. Chris Lewis, 20. Sualauvi Faalogo, 21. Reimis Smith, 22. Tepai Moeroa
Dragons: 1. Tyrell Sloan, 2. Zac Lomax, 3. Moses Suli, 4. Max Feagai, 5. Christian Tuipulotu, 6. Kyle Flanagan, 7. Ben Hunt, 8. Francis Molo, 9. Jacob Liddle, 10. Jack de Belin, 11. Luciano Leilua, 12. Jaydn Su’A, 13. Tom Eisenhuth, 14. Hame Sele, 15. Raymond Faitala-Mariner, 16. Ryan Couchman, 17. Blake Lawrie, 18. Lyhkan King-Togia, 19. Michael Molo, 20. Jack Bird, 21. Mikaele Ravalawa, 22. Connor Muhleisen
Referee: Grant Atkins
Embed from Getty ImagesMATCHDAY PREVIEW
The Melbourne Storm knows how to win. It’s not always pretty but winning is just ingrained into them. The Parramatta Eels made the Storm work hard for the win. At halftime, the Storm led 14-8 but did not have a tackle inside the Eels’ 20, while the Eels, on the other hand, had 21 tackles inside the Storm’s red zone.
After his return from a groin injury from the bench, Cameron Munster makes his return to the starting side this week. Tyran Wishart moves to the bench. Sualauvi Faalgo moves from the bench to 18th Man.
It doesn’t get better than Sunday afternoon footy at WIN Stadium, except for last weekend. The Dragons went down by 36 points (46-10) with Panthers halfback Nathan Cleary having a day out in his second game. Bright spots were few and far between for the Dragons, but winger Christian Tuipulotu has scored six tries in his past four games.
Tyrell Sloan returns to first grade this weekend after being dropped to the NSW Cup. Sloan replaces Mat Feagai, who is out due to concussion protocols. Ben Murdoch-Masila is out with a foot injury. Toby Couchman will miss the game after being suspended for a crusher tackle; his brother Ryan comes onto the bench. Blake Lawrie has also been added to the bench.
Jahrome Hughes is the form halfback of the competition at the moment and could very well be on his way to winning a Dally M. Ben Hunt is a wily veteran who knows how to win games. The clash between these two will be worth watching, but Hunt will need the support of his team if the Dragons have any hope of winning. The Eels showed what can be done, but with Munster back, it may be a tall order.
Tasesa Lavea is not a name too many people may remember unless you keep up with rugby league history. In 2000, the Storm defeated the Dragons 70-10 at the MCG. Lavea, who was playing five-eighth, scored 24 points with two tries and eight goals.
Head-to-head stats can be found at Number Crunch Stats.
MATCHDAY PREDICTION
Check out all the NRL Predictions here.
Storm by 18 points.
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