Brandon Smith reveals Curtis Scott’s emotion, disappointment after Dylan Walker punch
MELBOURNE Storm young gun Brandon Smith has lifted the lid on the emotional toll it took on housemate Curtis Scott being at the centre of a controversial two-game suspension.
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MELBOURNE Storm young gun Brandon Smith has lifted the lid on the emotional toll it took on housemate Curtis Scott being at the centre of a controversial two-game suspension.
Scott was sidelined for two games — downgraded from three on an early plea and good record — earlier in the season for striking Manly Sea Eagles firebrand Dylan Walker.
The pair could lock horns again on Saturday at Brookvale Oval, with Walker (knee) under a cloud following a knock last week.
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Walker sat out four weeks with a broken eye socket, courtesy of Scott, who unleashed fury on the lippy playmaker deep in the second half after being baited during the fiery Round 11 clash.
“I think everything that happened that game has been put to rest,” Smith said.
“We don’t really talk about it or anything, I think it was just one of those brain explosions you have as a rugby league player — he learned his lesson.
“He was devastated about the two weeks off he had and it felt like a lot longer than two weeks for him, I know he was really down on himself and he won’t go out and do anything stupid like that.”
The Scott-Walker incident caps a long history of Melbourne-Manly stoushes, dating back to the explosive 2007-08 grand finals and the infamous ‘Battle of Brookvale’ in 2011.
They have met on 32 occasions since 1998, with Storm leading the ledger 18-13-1.
“When I was a little kid I used to watch the rivalry with all the grand finals and I really admired the way they played footy,” Smith said.
“It was really tough and aggressive football — a lot of emotion is shown out there on the field with Storm and Manly so I can’t wait to be a part of that.”
Smith said Storm must focus on football and not the fights to extend their winning streak to six.
Manly is the last team to beat Storm way back in Round 11.
“I don’t think the anger is there, that didn’t work too well for us last game as you could tell by the scoreboard (24-4 loss),” Smith said.
“We’ll just worry about our game and our performance, if we do our job for the team and for each other that will work for us to get the W.”
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