NRL Grand Final / Nick Tedeschi / 01 October 2009 / Leave a comment Bet Now

Parramatta are the Cinderella team of the NRL in 2009 but it will be the Melbourne Storm who will be lifting the trophy come Sunday evening, writes Nick Tedeschi.

The Melbourne Storm have achieved something quite amazing. They have reached their fourth straight Grand Final, the first team to do so since Parramatta a quarter of a century back. Craig Bellamy is the first coach since Clive Churchill led Souths to their fifth consecutive decider in 1971 to coach a team to four straight Grand Finals. In this era of salary cap driven parity, the achievement of the Storm is quite astonishing.

Yet the only team anybody wants to talk about this week is Parramatta. The Eels have won 10 of their last 11. There is gushing for Dally M Medal winner Jarryd Hayne. There are emotional tales surrounding Nathan Hindmarsh and Nathan Cayless. Daniel Mortimer is being talked about as the second coming.

And the Melbourne Storm continue to slip under the radar.

Smart punters will have noticed how well the Storm have been playing over the last month, however. Melbourne have won four straight. The margins of those wins have been 34, 30, 28 and 30. They have revamped their attack to include Billy Slater and Greg Inglis more and it is paying dividends with the Storm averaging 37 points per match. Over that period, Slater has scored 8 tries and Inglis 6.

Combined with the top class Melbourne Storm that has been the benchmark over the last half-decade, it is hard to see Melbourne being broken down. The Storm have conceded the least points, tries and line breaks along with the fewest missed tackles this season.

That kind of defence is the best suited to shut down the elusive Jarryd Hayne. A defensive line controlled in the middle by Cameron Smith and Dallas Johnson and with no discernible weaknesses across the board is not going to be fooled by Hayne's change of pace or cross field running.

Melbourne are the complete team. They have danger men across the board combined with gritty hard workers who play the team game. For every Inglis and Slater there is a Johnson and a Turner. For every Smith and Cronk there is a Finch and a Tolman. The Storm have the perfect balance to take down Parramatta.

Melbourne are looking better than in any other of their past three deciders. They should be too strong for the Eels.

Those looking for value in the Clive Churchill Medal market should bet Cooper Cronk at any price above 10.0. Halfbacks have won seven Churchill Medals and Cronk is a key component of the Storm's attack and defence.

Tags: NRL, Parramatta, Storm