‘An art and a science’: how Storm plan to stop Walsh
Scott Bailey |
Cameron Smith and Cooper Cronk have seen Craig Bellamy pull this trick before.
A red-hot player such as Brisbane superstar Reece Walsh looming as the make-or-break man of the NRL grand final, only for Bellamy to devise a master plan for Melbourne to shut him down.
Easily the most dangerous player in the competition when he catches fire, Walsh is capable of ending the Broncos’ 19-year premiership drought after producing the match-defining plays in finals wins over Canberra and Penrith.
But under Bellamy, arguably no team is better at shutting down match-breaking players in grand finals than Melbourne.
The Storm silenced Jarryd Hayne in 2009, limited Ben Barba three years later, and did what no one else could by containing Jason Taumalolo at his peak in 2017.
“You talk about Barba and Hayne, the mentality is you’re not going to take them out of the game,” Storm legend Cameron Smith said as Bellamy prepared to coach his 11th decider.
“It’s stating the obvious that the main threat from the Broncos is Reece Walsh. I have no doubt he will most certainly be in the forefront of Craig’s mind.
“You just want to minimise the impact they have.”
Stopping the game’s elite on grand-final day is no cut-and-paste job.
When Melbourne made Hayne ineffective in 2009 and denied him a single line-break, they offered the Parramatta fullback little space and kicked him out of the game.
Barba had plenty of touches in 2012, but Melbourne’s ability to deny the No.1 linking with teammates meant he went without a try or try assist for the first time in five months.
And when the Storm slowed down the play-the-balls before Taumalolo’s hit-ups in 2017, the North Queensland star had his quietest yardage game in three seasons.
“It’s an art and a science,” Cronk told AAP.
“Craig comes up with a defensive game plan to minimise those players.
“He does a lot of video analysis, he knows what the trends are of a player and a pattern of play.
“And he opens up to the team around him saying, ‘I think this could work, what do you think?’
“But I would trust Craig Bellamy to come up with a plan to shut down Reece.”
The key to Sunday, Cronk believes, will be Melbourne getting at Brisbane’s halves and either limiting Walsh’s ball or giving him little room to move.
“I imagine it will be more aggressive than passive,” Cronk said.
“It will be trying to shut down the ball before he gets it, or if he gets it landing on him before he goes.
“You’re either going to go from outside-in and don’t let Reece get the ball by shutting down Adam Reynolds or Ben Hunt.
“Or you slide off and defend one-on-one and trust the other person to make the tackle. It’s probably a two-pronged approach.”
The Storm must also be methodical at Accor Stadium, Smith noted.
“It’s going to start with a great kick plan against him, where they are going to finish their sets, where they are going to put the ball,” the NRL’s all-time games record-holder said.
“Their kick-chase needs to be on all match. And then any broken play or offloads from Brisbane’s forwards, they need to be ready to scramble.”
The Broncos point to Walsh’s late match-winning effort from nowhere against Penrith as proof that stopping him is easier said than done.
“The Panthers are a great side and contained him for most of the game,” Reynolds said.
“But Walshy is always going to question defences and turn up in different places.”
And after a year in which they have come from 14 points behind to win five times, the Broncos will back themselves to strike from anywhere at any time.
“That’s the strength of the team,” Reynolds said.
“When we get it right we’re a dangerous team.”
Stopping Walsh alone won’t guarantee Melbourne their first premiership since 2020, with Cronk viewing Payne Haas as the other key factor.
Many rivals have attempted to wear him down, but as was evidenced last week against Penrith no amount of early tackling seems to make a difference.
Of note, though, is the fact Haas averages less metres against Melbourne than any other team.
“The thing about putting as much work into him as possible is he has an engine like not too many front-rowers in the history of the game,” Cronk said.
“But I would imagine if he is that hard to handle up top, then maybe first contact is around the legs.”
AAP
