Round 18
Storm 10 d. Broncos 4

2006 NRL Telstra Premiership Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats] [Club Headlines]

Location: Aus_NZ > National > First Grade Competition: NRL Telstra Premiership

Storm extend lead at the top
Sat July 8, 2006
Source: www.melbournestorm.com.au

Melbourne Storm has extended its lead at the head of the 2006 Telstra NRL ladder to six points in front of its biggest crowd since 2000, battling out a hard fought 10-4 victory over the Brisbane Broncos.

In front of 15,479 vocal fans, both sides played with a toughness and skill level in wet and cold conditions that underlines why they currently occupy the top two positions in the competition.

Crowd favourite Billy Slater made his return to NRL action and he was determined to make his mark.

After the Storm opened their account in the 8th minute through a penalty goal, Slater injected himself into the game in a way only the Storm excitement machine can.

When Slater gathered the ball and began to run, the crowd rose sensing something special was about to happen.

After breaking several tackles, his darting run in-field opened room on the outside for Steve Turner to burst in to. When the time came, Slater's backhanded pass sent Turner on his way and with open space in front of him there was no catching the speedy winger.

The first-half ended with the scoreline at 6-0, and given the ferocity in tackling from both teams, it seemed it wouldn't take too many points to win the game.

After the break, the big hits continued, and it wasn't until the 57th minute when the Storm ran the ball on the fifth tackle that they opened up some breathing space against the visitors.

The ball passed through several pairs of hands before finding its way to Ryan Hoffman who gathered with five metres to go before crossing to extend the home team's lead to ten points.

Only minutes later, Slater was at it again, only this time it was on his own try line.

With the Broncos threatening, Broncos winger Brent Tate found the ball in his hands, and when it seemed certain he would score in the corner, Slater's speed got him to the contest, shoulder charging Tate into touch to maintain the Storm's ten point advantage.

However, when it looked as though the Storm were going to keep the Broncos scoreless, there was to be a twist in the tale.

With eight minutes remaining, Shane Webcke burst through the defensive line, before setting Shaun Berrigan on his way. Offloading to Darren Lockyer on the inside, the Broncos' captain spread the ball out wide to Greg Eastwood who gathered superbly in the greasy conditions to score in the corner, setting up a barnstorming finish.

However, as has been the case all year, the Storm defense stood firm and the final whistle sparked scenes of celebration among the impressive home crowd.

"At the start of the year we let Kearns and Chan go, and we lost Peter Robinson so we lost a lot of experience out of our pack," said Bellamy.

"So our leadership was going to come from Kidwell, and Crocker, and certainly Dennis Scott and Glen Turner, and they haven't even played.

"And tonight we didn't have Donnelly and Crossman who have been really good for us this year, so what some of these young blokes have been doing for us has been tremendous.

"We basically have a pack out at the moment and I can't wrap them enough for what they're doing."

The only sour part of the night for the Storm were the injuries to Antonio Kaufusi and Scott Hill.

"We were lucky that Kaufusi could get back out there," said Bellamy.

"He got a bit of a tweak in his medial ligament, but it can't be too serious because he could go back on.

"But losing Hill for the game certainly didn't help us with his rib cartilage injury. It took him a while to get up and he didn't seem to be too well when he came to the sideline. I imagine it will be a couple of weeks injury."

Melbourne Storm's next game is against Newcastle at EnergyAustralia Stadium before returning to Olympic Park against the Cronulla Sharks for another dose of Friday night football.

Report sent by: www.melbournestorm.com.au

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