GRAND FINAL WEEK Brisbane Broncos vs Melbourne Storm

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Swordfish said:
Totally rigged Dally M’s. How the fcuk Tedesco wins the Dally M if not for blatant rigging, they just want to retain at least this stupid award in SHITney. Screw you.
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It almost always goes to a middling team where one player gets all the love. Like Ponga for example, he normally ranks highly as he gets the points every week as there's hardly any competition on his side. Just need a team to do reasonably well with lots of average players and one who people like / playing well. If you've got 3-4 stars, they take points off eachother as they fluctuate week in week out.
 
ningnangnong said:
How good is grand final week... just basking in the glory of that win on Sunday, looking forward to what the weekend holds.

Of course the stress and anxiety will come closer to game day, but enjoy the build-up everyone. Who knows when the next one will come.
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My only worry is i did all my yard work last Sunday waiting for the game, what the hell am I going to do this week to pass time???
Maybe I'll smoke a brisket or something
 
The Broncos are going to have to switch on in the middle of the ruck.

Melbourne aren't afraid to shift the ball and will do it anywhere on the park. They're looking for legs tackles so Harry Grant, Ryan Papenhuyzen, Cameron Munster etc. can attack in behind the ruck which is where the Broncos can be weak.

In their first encounter, the Broncos were giving up so much space through the middle that Grant actually had too much time and couldn't execute. With Hughes back in, the Broncos cannot afford to give him the same luxury.

Pressure on Loiero, he's their link man but has been found wanting lately. If they can get in his face it could disrupt their flow and make it easier to account for Hughes and Munster.

The challenge will be trying to stop the cross-field kick to Coates. It's a cheat code and Mariner isn't as adept under the high ball as Arthars. Brisbane got away with it in their previous encounter, but Melbourne should be able to account for it betterthis time around. I feel like a big call is going to be made around these challenges, so I'm keen to see how the Broncos adapt.

For the Broncos, the key men - Walsh, Staggs, Hunt, Reynolds, Haas, Carrigan, Mam will all have to step up and contribute. In order for them to do their jobs, Paix will have to play a career game and be prepared to contribute something in offence because he's one player I'm sure Melbourne will be happy to slide off of.

Piakura on Hughes also shapes as a big contest. I expect the Storm to run plenty of traffic at him to try and limit his impact. I expect them to send a lot of big boppers his way to get him to tackle low and if he cops a stray knee, so be it. Madge will have to be careful of this.

I see a lot of the Broncos best attacking opportunities coming down the left. Katoa, Hughes, Meaney and Warbrick can be vulnerable and that's where the Walsh face pass could be lethal.

It's one of those games where head says Melbourne but there's just so much belief from the Broncos that I feel they have all the momentum.

It's a similar feeling to the past few Broncos GFs, where the only thing that would surprise me is if it's just a walk-over and one of the teams simply doesn't turn up.

A couple of good omens for the Broncos.

In 2015, felt like the Cowboys went into the game slightly better off. Brisbane had the unwanted distraction of whether Hodges would play or not. Plus, Morgs played the last encounter clearly short of a gallop, he was going to be better in the GF.

2023 the Broncos were very scratchy against the Warriors and only put the Warriors away with one of the worst forward passes you'll ever see. It was not an ideal lead in against the greatest team of the modern era.

2025 they've done it the hard way, they've won against insurmountable odds and there's a grit to this team. Carrigan returning is a timely boost and the likes of Reynolds, Mam and Willison should be better for the run. They've yet to put it altogether, this could be the weekend.
 
Big Pete said:
The Broncos are going to have to switch on in the middle of the ruck.

Melbourne aren't afraid to shift the ball and will do it anywhere on the park. They're looking for legs tackles so Harry Grant, Ryan Papenhuyzen, Cameron Munster etc. can attack in behind the ruck which is where the Broncos can be weak.

In their first encounter, the Broncos were giving up so much space through the middle that Grant actually had too much time and couldn't execute. With Hughes back in, the Broncos cannot afford to give him the same luxury.

Pressure on Loiero, he's their link man but has been found wanting lately. If they can get in his face it could disrupt their flow and make it easier to account for Hughes and Munster.

The challenge will be trying to stop the cross-field kick to Coates. It's a cheat code and Mariner isn't as adept under the high ball as Arthars. Brisbane got away with it in their previous encounter, but Melbourne should be able to account for it betterthis time around. I feel like a big call is going to be made around these challenges, so I'm keen to see how the Broncos adapt.

For the Broncos, the key men - Walsh, Staggs, Hunt, Reynolds, Haas, Carrigan, Mam will all have to step up and contribute. In order for them to do their jobs, Paix will have to play a career game and be prepared to contribute something in offence because he's one player I'm sure Melbourne will be happy to slide off of.

Piakura on Hughes also shapes as a big contest. I expect the Storm to run plenty of traffic at him to try and limit his impact. I expect them to send a lot of big boppers his way to get him to tackle low and if he cops a stray knee, so be it. Madge will have to be careful of this.

I see a lot of the Broncos best attacking opportunities coming down the left. Katoa, Hughes, Meaney and Warbrick can be vulnerable and that's where the Walsh face pass could be lethal.

It's one of those games where head says Melbourne but there's just so much belief from the Broncos that I feel they have all the momentum.

It's a similar feeling to the past few Broncos GFs, where the only thing that would surprise me is if it's just a walk-over and one of the teams simply doesn't turn up.

A couple of good omens for the Broncos.

In 2015, felt like the Cowboys went into the game slightly better off. Brisbane had the unwanted distraction of whether Hodges would play or not. Plus, Morgs played the last encounter clearly short of a gallop, he was going to be better in the GF.

2023 the Broncos were very scratchy against the Warriors and only put the Warriors away with one of the worst forward passes you'll ever see. It was not an ideal lead in against the greatest team of the modern era.

2025 they've done it the hard way, they've won against insurmountable odds and there's a grit to this team. Carrigan returning is a timely boost and the likes of Reynolds, Mam and Willison should be better for the run. They've yet to put it altogether, this could be the weekend.
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You tipped against them for the pen ref game, are you on board this time then?
 
Jedhead said:
You tipped against them for the pen ref game, are you on board this time then?
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At the risk of jinxing it, I haven't tipped Brisbane since the Knights game.

I'm superstitious and even though I was tossing up between Brisbane and Penrith, that was an easy decision once I remembered the routine.

Melbourne have been my pick since last year.
 
Betr are offering $4 for the Broncos max $25 bet if you want some free money through arbitrage..... or if you are really confident 😉

Beware the curse. They had Geelong an inflated price last week. The amount of time these specials dont come through is amazing. Its almost like it is a script and they know the result.
 
Big Pete said:
At the risk of jinxing it, I haven't tipped Brisbane since the Knights game.

I'm superstitious and even though I was tossing up between Brisbane and Penrith, that was an easy decision once I remembered the routine.

Melbourne have been my pick since last year.
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I understand your apprehension matey.

See I'm the opposite. When I stopped to consider the tipping comp throughout the year the thought of tipping against our boys even though I had the feeling we were at times underdone, it felt like a betrayal.

I know it's totally irrational but I just couldn't do it. Otherwise I'd be well in front in the tipping comp.

I know, we all know that one dodgy ref's decision could ruin our day and we also know that the storm (especially Harry) are masters at exploiting it. So yeh in an evenly matched battle Melbourne do have by far the upper hand in the 'bending the rules' stakes. Come Sunday though I know our guys will play such a solid game that those dodgy decisions will not save bellyache's chancers.

We've got this!
 
I feel like this game is almost a sliding doors moment for the NRL.

For the last 10 or so years the dominant teams such as storm, panthers and for a couple of years the Roosters have all played very structured football. They've had an organising halfback, aim to complete 90%, 5 hit ups, kick and chase and repeat until the opposition makes an error. Basically apply pressure until they get into the opposition 20 then go for the kill and when they score its rinse and repeat. Low risk high % football.

The Broncos in that period have been known as entertainers. They've been called "thrill seekers" and lauded for their attack but their style of footy had never really been spoken about in the same breath as winning a premiership. Its the style of footy that has never been given a chance agaisnt that structured build pressure boring style of footy penrith and melbourne have had so much sucess with.

I feel like this hasn't helped Brisbane to find and accept their identity. They've been told for so long this power game with out and out attack can't win premierships so they lose their way at times trying to adapt to the typical structured style. When madge came in and during brisbanes losing streak, it felt to me like he was trying to wind back, ever so slightly broncos all attack game plan and include some sense of structure. The start of the winning streak probably coincides with brisbane feeling comfortable playing this type of footy and getting that balance right. Kev was probably too much attack where Seibs was too much structure, Madge had nailed it.

If Brisbane can win a premiership with this different mentality and approach to big games ill be fascinated to see if it creates a wider shift across the NRL with teams trying to be less Penrith like and more Brisbane like.

On the flip side, the media will be all over it if the Storm win and the narrative that boring football wins premierships will remain unchanged for another year.
 
Brett Da Man LeMan said:
My only worry is i did all my yard work last Sunday waiting for the game, what the hell am I going to do this week to pass time???
Maybe I'll smoke a brisket or something
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I work for myself (music producer, sound engineer) and last week and this week, I haven't done any work really lol

I just am so consumed with it all, I'm just watching highlights and nrl 360 and anything and everything Broncos related.

We have to win!!!!
 
Remember the dark times. Do it for Santa, Bris

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