Round 3
Melbourne Storm 30 d. New Zealand Warriors 12

2007 NRL Telstra Premiership Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats] [Club Headlines]

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

High Noon at The Graveyard
Sun April 1, 2007
Source: www.melbournestorm.com.au

A fired-up Melbourne Storm crushed an uninspiring New Zealand Warriors in front of 12,874 sun-drenched league fans today at Olympic Park. The Storm finished convincing 30-12 winners to remain undefeated in 2007, regaining the Michael Moore trophy in the process.

It took less than five minutes for the Storm to make its mark with a classy try down the eastern touchline. Involving Cameron Smith, Cooper Cronk, Matt King, Matt Geyer, and the fast-finishing of Billy Slater, the effort saw quick hands and speed leaving the Warriors with no answers.

It then went from bad to worse for New Zealand, kicking out on the full from the re-start. The ensuing penalty gifted the Storm strong field position; in a flash, Slater threw a wide pass to Israel Folau who crossed untouched out wide to keep his try-tally ticking over and the Storm on the front foot.

Throughout the first half, Melbourne's defence was as aggressive as it was disciplined; the attack as creative as it was mistake-free. It was therefore no surprise when in the 17th minute the Storm scored their third try.

After a crafty Cameron Smith run gave Melbourne a sniff of the tryline, Greg Inglis linked with Ryan Hoffman who charged onto the ball with enough force to guarantee that a brick wall wouldn't have denied him four more points.

Soon after, the crowd leapt to its feet as Cronk chip-kicked for Slater at the halfway line, the fullback picking up the pill, leaving three Warriors in his wake and placing diving underneath the black dot. It looked a cricket score might be in order, but the video referee denied the try and in doing so gave the Warriors a chance to get back into the game.

The rest of the half was all New Zealand as they set up camp in the Storm's 20 metre zone and forced Melbourne to defend set after set of attack. However, whereas the Storm turned its early game possession into points, the Warriors found no joy. Melbourne may have had their energy sapped, but not their spirit, as they went into the sheds with a commanding 14-0 lead.

The second half opened with more Storm flair. Cronk, under pressure from a determined Steve Price, delivered a pinpoint accurate kick to the eastern corner and into the perfectly timed leap of an airborne Folau. The new crowd-favourite shrugged off Manu Vatuvei and nabbed his second double in as many matches.

A converted try to Vatuvei soon after gave the Warriors a sniff of a comeback, but when King answered by crossing the line himself ? thanks largely to a sharp pass from Geyer ? the 24-6 scoreline looked like enough for Melbourne. The veteran, though, obviously had different ideas.

The sometime playmaker was again instrumental five minutes later, placing a crafty grubber kick in the vicinity of 'The Kid' Slater, who confirmed the Warriors' trip to Boot Hill with a well-deserved double.

A rampaging run from Sam Rapira gave the visitors some consolation in the form a second try, but it was not enough to take the shine off a Melbourne side that continues to improve as the season progresses.

Next week's road trip to Newcastle promises to be another tough encounter for the Storm, but one that they should feel confident in tackling.

STORM 30 (Tries: Slater 2, Folau 2, Hoffman, King; Goals: Smith 3) def. WARRIORS 12 (Tries: Vatuvei, Rapira; Goals: Martin 2).

Report sent by: www.melbournestorm.com.au


Storm Round 3 Game Notes v Warriors
Thu March 29, 2007
Source: www.melbournestorm.com.au

After a sluggish first-half, the Storm ran away with a 32-16 win over the Raiders at Canberra Stadium in Round 2.

Brett White was voted the players'-player-of-the-week after his two try effort, one of which is an early contender for try-of-the-year.

The Warriors were even more impressive with their Round 2, 24-14 defeat over the Brisbane Broncos.

Their come-from-behind victory over the reigning premiers gave the club their first ever 2-0 start to an NRL season.

WHO: Melbourne Storm v New Zealand Warriors
WHAT: Round 3 of the 2007 Telstra Premiership season
WHERE: Olympic Park, Melbourne
WHEN: Sunday, April 1st @ 12:00pm
ON TV: Fox Sports 3 LIVE
CHECK IT OUT: Melbourne Storm's website with all the latest stats, profiles, updates, schedule and training times, alerts, news etc - www.melbournestorm.com.au

INS AND OUTS
Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy has named an 18-man squad for this Sunday afternoon's clash against the Warriors.

Bellamy has named an unchanged starting line-up to that which took the field against the Canberra Raiders last Saturday night.

James Aubusson returns to the squad after getting some much needed match practice in Queensland for the Storm's feeder side, Brisbane Norths.

Ryan Shortland, who made his NRL debut last weekend against the Raiders, is 18th man.

FAST FACTS
* The Storm's only loss at home for the 2006 season was against the Warriors (in Round 24)

* In their past 14 games at Olympic Park, the Storm have conceded only 12 points per game on average

* The Storm are daytime specialists, winning nine of their past 10

* The Warriors have an exceptional record at Olympic Park winning three and drawing one of their past eight visits

DID YOU KNOW?
* 2006 Dally M Medallist Cam Smith will play his 100th NRL game

* The two teams will be playing for the Michael Moore Trophy, named after Melbourne's first team manager who tragically died after a game between the two teams in Auckland in 2000

KEY MATCH-UP
New Zealand's two veteran props, Ruben Wiki and Steve Price, laid the platform for the Warriors' win over the Broncos last weekend and it will be the front-row battle which determines this game as well.

If Wiki and Price do a better job at bashing holes in the opposition's defence than Melbourne's own bookends, Brett White and Antonio Kaufusi, then it could be a long day at the office for the home team.

But if White and Kaufusi get a roll on for their team, Melbourne's backline may cause the New Zealander's some serious damage.

HEAD-TO-HEAD
Total: Played: 17, Storm: 8, Warriors: 8, Draw: 1
At Olympic Park: Played: 7, Storm: 4, Warriors: 3

FOR AND AGAINST 2007
Points for: Storm: 50, Warriors: 58
Points against: Storm: 32, Warriors: 32
Tries for: Storm: 9, Warriors: 10
Points differential: Storm: +18, Warriors: +26

LAST ROUND MATCHES
Storm: def. Raiders 32-16 @ Canberra Stadium, Canberra
Warriors: def. Broncos 24-14 @ Mt Smart Stadium, Auckland

LAST EIGHT CLASHES
2006 Warriors def Storm 24-20 @ Olympic Park
2006 Storm def. Warriors 22-16 @ Mt Smart Stadium
2005 Storm def. Warriors 22-10 @ Olympic Park
2005 Warriors def. Storm 24-16 @ Mt Smart Stadium
2004 Storm def. Warriors 42-6 @ Olympic Park
2004 Warriors def. Storm 20-14 @ Mt Smart Stadium
2003 Storm def. Warriors 14-12 @ Mt Smart Stadium
2002 Warriors def. Storm 28-12 @ Olympic Park

THE STORM STORY SO FAR
ROUND 1: Storm 18 (Tries: J. Smith, Hoffman, Folau; Goals: C. Smith 3) def. Wests Tigers 16 (Tries: Moodie, Harrison, Whatuira; Goals: Marshall 2) @ Olympic Park
ROUND 2: Storm 32 (Tries: White 2, Folau 2, Slater, Geyer; Goals: C. Smith 4) def. Raiders 16 (Tries: Carney, Graham, Best; Goals: Dobson 2) at Canberra Stadium

2007 TRY SCORERS (STORM)
Folau 3, White 2, J. Smith, Hoffman, Slater, Geyer

2007 GOAL SCORERS (STORM)
C. Smith 7

2007 FIELD GOAL SCORERS (STORM)
N/A

2007 POINTSCORERS (STORM)
C. Smith 14, Folau 12, J. Smith 4, Hoffman 4, Geyer 4, Slater 4

MELBOURNE STORM MEDIBANK PRIVATE INJURY UPDATE
Danny Vaughan: Season (ACL)
Adam Blair: Indefinite (Ankle)
Pale Ale: 5 weeks (Ankle)
Matthew Bartlett: 3 weeks (Ankle)
Ian Donnelly: 2 weeks (Ankle)

THE STORM AHEAD
Round 4: Saturday, April 7th v Knights @ Energy Australia Stadium, 5:30pm
Round 5: Saturday, April 14th v Dragons @ OKI Jubilee Stadium, 5:30pm
Round 6: Saturday, April 21st v Panthers @ Olympic Park, 7:30pm
Round 7: Friday, April 27th v Broncos @ Suncorp Stadium, 7:30pm
Round 8: Saturday, May 5th v Wests Tigers @ Blue Tongue Stadium, 7:30pm
Round 9: Monday, May 14th v Bulldogs @ Olympic Park, 7:00pm

TELSTRA PREMIERSHIP LADDER
1. Cowboys 4
2. Sea Eagles 4
3. Rabbitohs 4
4. Warriors 4
5. Storm 4
6. Knights 4
7. Sharks 2
8. Panthers 2
9. Titans 2
10. Dragons 2
11. Tigers 0
12. Broncos 0
13. Bulldogs 0
14. Eels 0
15. Raiders 0
16. Roosters 0

SQUAD FOR SUNDAY'S GAME
Starting team:
1. Billy Slater
2. Matt Geyer
3. Matt King
4. Anthony Quinn
5. Israel Folau
6. Greg Inglis
7. Cooper Cronk
8. Antonio Kaufusi
9. Cameron Smith
10. Brett White
11. Jeremy Smith
12. Ryan Hoffman
13. Dallas Johnson

Interchange:
14. Michael Crocker
15. Jeff Lima
16. Ben Cross
17. James Aubusson
18. Ryan Shortland
(one to be omitted)

Coach:
Craig Bellamy

News sent by: www.melbournestorm.com.au

Tue March 27, 2007
• Warriors unchanged for trip to Melbourne
  
Tue March 27, 2007
• Storm names 18-man squad for Warriors clash
  

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