Storm prop sets sights on shutting down Papalii
MELBOURNE pack leader Jesse Bromwich is making it his mission in Saturday’s NRL qualifying final to get on top of Canberra wrecking ball Josh Papalii. The New Zealand-born Queenslander scored the winning try in their round 22 meeting, when the Raiders came from an 18-point deficit for a shock four-point win. It prompted Raiders great and Australian coach Mal Meninga to describe Papalii as “the best front-rower in the game”. Bromwich said stopping Papalii was a key to beating the Raiders at AAMI Park to secure a preliminary final berth and a week off. “Definitely,” Bromwich said when asked if it was a personal challenge. “Josh is in careerbest form at the moment ... it’s not super personal, but you definitely go out there trying to play better than the opposition.” Craig Bellamy is also well aware of Papalii’s ability to come up with a big play when Canberra need it most, with his try the stuff of nightmares for the Storm coach. “He just went straight through our middle to score that try,” Bellamy said. “He is playing the best footy of his career and is a guy we need to defend well against on Saturday.” While wary of the threat posed by Papalii, Bromwich said the Storm have their own weapon in giant prop Nelson Asofa-Solomona. “He’s gone to another level in the back end of this year,” the Kiwi veteran said. “I think he’s figured out that he’s the biggest guy on the field and is acting that way. Bromwich said the Storm got complacent after racing to a big lead the last time they played the Raiders but they wouldn’t make the same mistake again. “For us it’s about really locking in and playing for the full 80 minutes,” he said.