Round 12: Sea Eagles v Storm preview
Melbourne Storm head North to take on the Sea Eagles, who are back home after three back-to-back losses, their most recent two being lost up further North at Suncorp Stadium.
Manly are looking to bounce back after their string of losses saw them drop from fourth place to eleventh on the ladder, with their last win being against the Eels in Round 8. Last week saw a tight contest between them and Broncos, but poor decisions from the side and missed opportunities saw them lacking some magic.
After suffering a shoulder injury during Round 10, Jason Saab makes his return to the side, earlier than originally expected, which means Jaxon Paulo is pushed to the reserves. With Matt Lodge looking to spend a stint on the sidelines after suffering a bicep tear against the Broncos, Nathan Brown takes his place on the bench. The side is otherwise unchanged besides these forced changes.
After suffering a close loss to the Sharks at home during Round 10, the Storm bounced back during Magic Round in style, defeating the Eels 48-10, and recovered despite the loss of Cameron Munster in the 39th minute. This leaves Melbourne sitting comfortably in second place on the ladder, even though their full spine has only been able to play five of ten matches so far this year.
Storm confirmed that Munster is set to miss 8-10 matches, which is compounded by the earlier loss of Jonah Pezet for the season as well as Ryan Papenhuyzen also currently on the sidelines. Jahrome Hughes has been named in the side, after suffering a calf strain in Round 9, with Tyran Wishart filling in at five eighth and Grant Anderson also remaining on the bench. Tui Kamikamica is named to play at prop for his 100th match, with Josh King returning to starting lock.
The stats are stacked in favour of both sides, with Melbourne winning their past three games away from home, however they have not had luck recently at 4 Pines Park, with them losing their past two clashes against the Sea Eagles at Brookvale. Although, Bellamy has a good record against Anthony Seibold, winning five of their seven encounters.
Last meeting: Round 17 2023 - Storm 24 Sea Eagles 6
Who to watch: Primarily playing as a centre so far in his career, Tolu Koula has been shifted to fullback with Tom Trbojevic sitting back on the sidelines. Across the 2024 season he has scored five tries, made two try assists, eleven tackle breaks and five linebreaks. It will be interesting to watch him settle more into the fullback role as he spends more time in that position until Trbojevic returns.
Making his NRL debut during Round 27 last year, Sua Faalogo is a rising star, with him already showing glimpses of magic and potential. Filling in at both winger and fullback, Faalogo has played three games this year, scoring one try whilst making ten tackle breaks and three linebreaks. With Papenhuyzen spending some time on the sidelines, Faalogo has the opportunity to gain more NRL experience and continue to grow as a up and coming player.
Favourite: The Storm are favoured to add another two points to their count to keep them comfortably sitting in the top two.
My tip: Despite missing valuable spine players, I think the Storm will be able to get the job done. Manly are not totally cohesive on the field, and I don't think they will be able to snap out of their losing streak against Melbourne. Storm by 20.
