MUNSTER GROUNDED AS STORM AIMS TO CONTINUE STREAK
Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy has conceded his confusion over the state of Cameron Munster’s groin injury after confirmation the star playmaker was set to miss Friday night’s round 1 clash against Penrith.
It’s a hammer blow in the Storm’s quest for a 22nd consecutive openinground win, with the club having never lost a round 1 encounter while Bellamy has been in charge.
Munster confirmed earlier this week that he aggravated an ongoing issue when he slipped in the shower during his team’s pre-season trip to Fiji.
Despite being able to train, which he did on his own on Thursday, the fiveeighth has been unable to get to the level needed to take on the reigning premier at AAMI Park, and Bellamy was puzzled as to what Munster’s immediate playing future looks like.
“We don’t think he’s going to play,” Bellamy said of Munster.
“It’s disappointing for us and for Cameron, as he’s done everything asked of him, but it hasn’t got good enough for him to play.
“One day it looks like he’s going to play and then the next day it doesn’t, so I don’t think anyone’s exactly sure of what it is or how to fix it.”
On the eve of the clash with the triplepremiership winning Panthers, who destroyed Melbourne in last year’s preliminary final before going on to seize the title, Bellamy said he was weighing up whether to use Jonah Pezet, who has worn the No.6 jumper in the Storm’s two trial matches, or utility Tyran Wishart to start in Munster’s place.
It looms as a momentous task going up against the game’s best halves combination of Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai.
“We tried a couple of guys there today - Tyran Wishart is our 14 so he can play a couple of positions, and young Jonah’s played our trials so we will have a look after training and make a decision from there,” Bellamy said.
“I’m really confident both of them could get the job done.”
Never one to dwell on the past, Bellamy was unmoved by his team’s round 1 record. The last time the Storm lost in a season-opener was in 2001, when Chris Anderson was coach.
But Bellamy’s eyes were wide open to the challenge of taking on the Panthers, likely to be stirred in to action by their loss in the World Club Challenge to English side Wigan in the UK last month.
“Whether it’s round one or round 20, they’ve won three premierships in a row and you don’t fluke that,” Bellamy said.
“We know what we’re up against and we need to stick to what we’ve practised all pre-season and what we think is going to work for us.”
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