Storm belt Dogs 28-6 in ominous warning to NRL rivals

Melbourne has stretched its winning run to three straight to remain second on the NRL ladder while Canterbury have dropped to last after a disappointing 28-6 loss in Sunday afternoon’s return to Belmore.

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It’s the sad reality of how far this once proud club has fallen.

On a day Canterbury honoured one of its finest with a salute to the late Steve Folkes at the club’s spiritual home, the current day Bulldogs gave it all they had but still ended up smack bang on the bottom of the NRL ladder.

The 28-6 loss to Melbourne sees Canterbury remain on six competition points, equal with Penrith and Gold Coast, but the Bulldogs have dropped to last with the worst for and against percentages.

Cameron Smith had a strong day for the away side. Picture: Steve Christo

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“We don’t want to be there,” Pay said.

But as a tough as it must be for Pay to swallow, he maintained he can’t help but be proud of how hard the players are fighting for each other.

“We are building as a young team,” Pay said. “I just said to them then, I am proud of the way they keep sticking and hanging in.

“But we have to start learning how to build a bit more pressure. We only had five good ball sets in the whole game today and I think we completed one, maybe two. You can’t do that against a good side.”

Josh Addo-Carr scored a runaway try. Picture: Steve Christo

STORM TOO CLINICAL

It was a month ago now that Craig Bellamy threatened to wield the axe after the loss to an understrength Cronulla.

Melbourne hasn’t missed a beat since and going into Origin the team many expected to suffer a reality check in 2019 following Billy Slater’s retirement are looking as composed as ever.

On Sunday they jumped to an 8-0 halftime lead before closing out a comprehensive four-tries-to-one victory that was their third consecutive win to keep the Storm second on the ladder.

The two Cams, Smith and Munster, were again the maestros while upfront big Jesse Bromwich (198m) and Nelson Asofa-Solomona (159m) laid a strong platform.

The Bulldogs put in a respectable performance against the high flying Storm. Picture: Cameron Spencer

Josh Addo-Carr also produced a blistering two-try Origin warm up that included a sensational 60-metre solo try.

“I am really happy with just their attitude to games,” Bellamy said of the overall performance.

“I thought three weeks ago we were a bit away of where we should have been in that area. Since then they have been really good.”

BLOODY SUNDAY NOT A GOOD LOOK

Bellamy defended the decision from medical staff to allow Jahrome Hughes to stay on the field after an awful early head clash.

It was the result of some friendly fire from teammate Dale Finucane. While Finucane was forced off for a concussion test and did not return, it seemed strange that Hughes was allowed to stay out given he missed last week’s win over Wests Tigers because a high shot he copped off Maiko Sivo in the round nine match against Parramatta.

Melbourne ran riot at Belmore Oval. Picture: Cameron Spencer

Bellamy conceded the fact Hughes was concussed last week hadn’t crossed his mind but was confident in the process that allowed him to stay on the field.

“Obviously he was okay with our trainer and the HIA official on the sideline,” Bellamy said.

“It is a big cut. He showed a lot of heart to play out the game.

“He is going to have a few stitches. But it was a brave performance.”

BELMORE COMES ALIVE

It doesn’t quite match the game day experience at the new Bankwest Stadium. But for what it is, a blast from the past, it’s pretty hard to walk away from the return to the Bulldogs’ spiritual home at Belmore and not feel good about it.

It seemed the majority of the crowd of 13,131 that turned up where dressed in a Bulldogs jumper and a halftime performance from more than 1,500 young dancers from 46 different schools was wonderful for the local community.

It shows there is still a place in rugby league for the suburban ground experience, especially on a spectacular autumn Sunday afternoon.

MELBOURNE 28 (J Addo-Carr 2 N Asofa-Solomona W Chambers tries C Smith 5 R Papenhuyzen goals) bt CANTERBURY 6 (S Sue try R Martin goal) at Belmore Sports Ground. Referee: Chris Butler, Chris Sutton. Crowd: 13,131.