NRL 2020: Storm vow to keep Craig Bellamy as Cameron Smith eyes retirement

Melbourne chairman Matt Tripp has warned the Broncos that he is up for a fight to retain master coach Craig Bellamy, as Brisbane looks to secure him for 2022.

Cameron Smith of the Storm lifts the Premiership Trophy during the 2020 NRL Grand Final match between the Penrith Panthers and the Melbourne Storm at ANZ Stadium on October 25, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Craig Bellamy and Cameron Smith will decide their futures in Melbourne within a fortnight as Storm chairman Matt Tripp pledged the get the “gloves on” to stop his super coach defecting to the Broncos.

Tripp believes Smith is poised to announce his retirement, with Melbourne drawing up contingency plans that would see the 37-year-old champion potentially move into a coaching or board position next season.

But Melbourne powerbrokers remain hopeful the Storm‘s premiership win will convince Bellamy to stay loyal as he mulls over a mega 10-year offer to finish his career as the Broncos’ coaching director.

Bellamy is off-contract at the end of next season, when he plans to retire from head coaching. The Broncos are sweating on Bellamy arriving at Red Hill from 2022, discussing an initial five-year arrangement with a further five years at the Storm coach’s discretion.

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Storm vow to do everything they can to keep Craig Bellamy at the club. Picture: Getty Images.

Bellamy’s most important on-field leader, Smith, has yet to speak to the Storm about a new contract for 2021, fuelling Tripp’s belief the 430-game icon is ready to hang up the boots.

“I don’t believe Cam will play for us for next year,” Tripp said.

“I want him to stay at the club but I don‘t know if that will be in a playing capacity. If he was going to play somewhere else, I think I would know by now, I would have been told.

“They (Bellamy and Smith) are both in the same boat. After the grand final, I said to them, ‘Let’s not jump the gun, let’s take a couple of weeks to take a breath’ and I believe we will have a call from Cam and Craig in the next couple of weeks.

“Cam knows there is salary-cap pressures. He hasn’t told me he’s not going to play for us and if he does play on, we’ve got room in the salary cap, we can make it happen and I’ve told Cam that.

“I’ve got nothing to hide, I would love to know what Cam is doing.

“I am not pushing either of them. They are having a well-earned break and then we will work it out from there.”

The Storm are resigned to losing Cameron Smith to retirement, but want to see both stay at the club in some capacity. Picture: Getty Images.

The Storm are poised to lose their chief executive to the Broncos, with Dave Donaghy submitting his resignation on Thursday, a sign he will almost certainly be named Brisbane‘s new CEO in the coming months.

Tripp, however, is determined not to lose Bellamy, who is considering relocating to Queensland for family reasons in 2022.

“I would love for Craig to remain at the club in some capacity,” he said.

“Ideally that’s as head coach, but if it’s not head coach, I will do my best to design a role that will hopefully see him want to stay at the Melbourne Storm.

“He has done an amazing job and the club owes him everything. We are eternally grateful for all he has done for us and I hope that can continue and they are the discussions we need to have in the next few weeks.

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“I don‘t think he will be head coach (in 2022) but he might stay with us if we have another role for him.

“I‘m sure the Broncos are confident of getting him and that’s fine, I’m up for the fight. But we’ll get the gloves on and I’m hopeful he will stay with Melbourne.

“Craig has to think of his wife, his kids and his grandkids, but I hope he stays and that’s what I’ll be fighting for on behalf of the Melbourne Storm.”

Originally published as NRL 2020: Storm vow to keep Craig Bellamy as Cameron Smith eyes retirement