Storm brewing over use of the wrestle by Melbourne

On the eve of their NRL qualifying final, North Queensland coach Paul Green has raised concerns over Melbourne’s often- maligned ruck tactics.

The Storm have long been accused of using wrestling tactics to slow down the ruck so they can set their defence.

Green said the ruck interpretation from referees Ben Cummins and Grant Atkins was his biggest concern in tonight’s showdown at AAMI Park in Melbourne.

“The Storm are very good at controlling the speed of the play the ball, they’re very good at controlling the tempo of the game,” said Green.

“Whether or not they get away with it is up to the refs. I just hope the refs are consistent.”

Asked if his team would “return fire”, Green said if that was the way the game would be refereed, he wanted his team to be afforded the same latitude.

Meanwhile, Green said forward Jason Taumalolo owes it to his teammates to have a big game.

In a slight distraction for the Cowboys in their finals preparation, Taumalolo was charged yesterday with wilful damage after allegedly egging cars in Townsville.

“He’s pretty disappointed in him- self and he feels he has let his teammates down and the only way, if he’s fair dinkum, to show he’s sorry about it is to go out there and play well,” Green said.

The teams met at AAMI Park in last year’s preliminary final, with the Cowboys triumphant 32- 12.

Green said playing on the Storm’s home turf held no fears.

“We are not scared of playing here, we’ve had a win here in a big game before but they are a different team compared to this time last year. We have that confidence that we can get it done down here.”

Canterbury will draw inspiration from their 2014 NRL finals campaign as they look to put on a similar run from seventh spot.

The Bulldogs slipped to seventh on the ladder when they lost their last two regular season games in 2014, but then won three straight finals to reach the decider.

And while they were eventually beaten by South Sydney, they remain the only team from outside the top four to reach the grand final since the NRL brought in their new finals system in 2012.

Likewise, Canterbury again finished seventh on the ladder this year ahead of tomorrow’s elimination final against Penrith after losing their last three matches.

“I’m drawing from that,” fiveeighth Josh Reynolds said. “I know deep down when we do come in as a group and talk about it, that there is still that belief that we really can do it.”

Jarrod Croker admires what Canberra achieved two decades ago, but the skipper wants to make 2016 the start of a new golden era for the NRL club. The second- placed Raiders are looking to add a new chapter to what’s already been a history- making season when they play third- placed Cronulla tonight.

They haven’t been this far since 2012, when they beat the Sharks at home in week one of the finals.

That was their sixth win a row; this weekend, they’re chasing their 11th straight win.

It’s a feat they’ve achieved twice before — in 1989- 90 and 1994- 95, streaks which included their 1989 and 1994 grand final wins. The Green Machine haven’t enjoyed much success since, but Ricky Stuart’s men are on a mission this year.

“It was obviously a good era back in the late 80s, early 90s, and to be just a small part of that would be great,” Croker said.