Craig Bellamy’s high-flying Storm will play the most important NRL match ever held in Melbourne the night before the AFL grand final, avoiding a showdown at neighbouring AAMI Park only hours after the Victorian showpiece.
In a decision designed to capitalise on a public holiday for the AFL decider, the NRL is expected to announce later this week it will schedule Melbourne’s grand final qualifier on Friday week.
The Storm will play the winner of Saturday night’s Roosters-Sea Eagles clash at Allianz Stadium.
There was conjecture over when the Storm would play the preliminary final given Melbourne will come to a standstill for the AFL grand final at the MCG, but the NRL want clear air away from its rival code.
“I think it will be a great opportunity for Melbourne Storm to be front and centre on a [Victorian] public holiday the night before the AFL grand final in Melbourne,” Storm chief executive Justin Rodski told this masthead.
“We’d be really confident of a sellout crowd and it will be a great spectacle for the NRL.”
Ryan Papenhuyzen and the Storm will avoid a clash with the AFL grand final.Credit: Getty Images
The AFL’s finals series being one week in advance of the NRL play-offs has caused significant dilemmas for rugby league, with the Swans and GWS Giants both hosting matches in Sydney this month.
The NRL opted not to schedule the Bulldogs-Sea Eagles elimination final at the same time as the Giants’ sudden death semi-final loss to the Lions in the Sydney Olympic Park precinct on Saturday night.
They were rewarded when more than 50,000 people watched Canterbury’s first finals match in eight years on Sunday.
But NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo confirmed the Sharks would play their week two finals game against the Cowboys at Allianz Stadium this Friday night, despite the Swans selling out the neighbouring SCG for a preliminary final against Port Adelaide.
Cronulla chief executive Dino Mezzatesta initially lobbied the NRL for the game to be played at PointsBet Stadium, with a capacity of just 14,000, given it was against out-of-town North Queensland.
“I can understand clubs wanting to host a final if they qualify for one,” NRL head of football Graham Annesley said. “But in this case, the policy is there for all to see. They know what the policy and the operations manual is distributed at the start of the year. Once we get past week one, we move to major stadiums.”
By scheduling the Storm the night before the AFL grand final, the winner of the Roosters and Sea Eagles shootout will have only six days to recover.
Manly coach Anthony Seibold is facing a similar dilemma this week with the Roosters having two extra days to prepare for their clash at Allianz Stadium.
“They probably deserve that because they finished higher up the table than us,” Seibold said after the Sea Eagles’ comeback win over the Bulldogs. “We have no complaints.”
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