NRL 2018 season review: Melbourne Storm let glory slip

MELBOURNE Storm were supposed to be weakened by the loss of Cooper Cronk. Instead, Craig Bellamy’s side defied the critics yet again. But the fall at the final hurdle will be hard to get over.

Melbourne Storm NRL season review

EVERY year the Melbourne Storm have been predicted to regress a little as the “big three” aged some more.

But every season they have defied the critics and done what other sides find near impossible — maintain their high level of success.

This year, their task was supposed to be infinitely harder after losing veteran halfback Cooper Cronk to the Sydney Roosters.

Not many teams could recover from losing such a key cog in their machine. But Melbourne Storm did what Melbourne Storm do and clawed their way to a grand final.

Storm can look back with pride and regret. (Brett Costello)

WHERE THEY FINISHED

2nd, runner-up

WHAT WENT WRONG

They finished 2018 with the most points in the competition but when you peel back that number there are some interesting statistics that reveal how big of a shift the loss of Cronk created.

In 2017, the Storm scored more tries (125) and engaged the line (529) and made more linebreaks (156) than any other team in the competition.

This year they dropped out of the top for line engagements and linebreaks and scored 31 less tries than in 2017.

Brodie Croft was one of Melbourne’s bright new talents. (AAP Image/David Crosling)

WHAT WENT RIGHT

Despite being without an experienced No. 7, Bellamy devised a strategy, a halfback rotation of sorts to help fill the void left by Cronk. On the face of it, it’s an approach destined for doom but Bellamy made it look like a masterstroke as he swapped halfbacks Brodie Croft, Ryley Jacks and Jahrome Hughes in and out of his 17 to suit his weekly game-plan.

STATS THAT SUM UP THE SEASON

The Storm topped the list for errors made this year with (294) for an average of 11 mistakes per game and that trend continued into their most important game of the year. They fumbled their way to 14 errors during the grand final.

There’s something missing here — and it’s not Cooper Cronk. (AAP Image/James Ross)

KEY AREA THEY NEED TO IMPROVE

Discipline has been the cornerstone of Melbourne’s success over the past decade. So topping the count for errors (294) this year certainly won’t go down well with coach Bellamy and will no doubt be a focal point of their already gruelling pre-season.

HIGHLIGHT OF THE SEASON

Billy Slater’s great judiciary escape. The superstar fullback managed to convince the judiciary his try-saving play on Cronulla winger Sosaia Feki was not a shoulder charge, opening the door to a fairytale finish for the player widely regarded as the best fullback to have ever played the game.

The Slater judiciary was one of the most-talked about moments of the season. (AAP Image/Brendan Esposito)

LOWLIGHT OF THE SEASON

Melbourne will look back on the 2018 decider as the one that got away. They went into the grand final as not only the defending premiers but as the hot favourite. Instead, they were completely suffocated out of the contest in the first half. It was as bad as things got for a Melbourne outfit. League Immortal Andrew Johns said of the performance: “the worst I’ve seen Melbourne Storm play for probably 10 years”.

BIG NAME RECRUITS

No marquee recruits

BIG NAME LOSSES

Tim Glasby (Newcastle Knights), Ryley Jacks (Gold Coast), Ryan Hoffman (retired), Billy Slater (retired), Young Tonumaipea (released)

What next for Cameron Smith? (Michael Klein)

2019: BEST POSSIBLE SCENARIO

A top-four finish despite being without Slater and an established halfback for another season.

2019: WORST POSSIBLE SCENARIO

Like he did with State of Origin, Cameron Smith springs a retirement surprise and announces he’s decided to hang up the boots. He’s currently off contract for next year and it’s more than likely the durable hooker will re-sign. But if he doesn’t Bellamy will find himself tackling an NRL season without Smith for the first time since 2003. They made a grand final without Cronk, but how well would they fare in their first season post the “big three” era?

COACH SAFETY RATING: 9

Eight grand final appearances in 16 seasons and a new three-year deal inked earlier this year, should be enough to keep Bellamy off the coaching merry-go-round for the foreseeable future.

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Originally published as NRL 2018 season review: Melbourne Storm let glory slip