Storm name team for Dragons clash
Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy has named a 20-man squad for this Saturday’s Preliminary Final against the
St George-Illawarra Dragons.
After defeating the Parramatta Eels in the Qualifying Final, the Storm had the week’s break last weekend.
On the other hand, the Dragons played the Manly Sea Eagles in the semi-finals, accounting for them 28-0 in
a dominant display.
| Storm Team |
| 1. | Billy Slater |
| 2. | Matt Geyer |
| 3. | Matt King |
| 4. | Greg Inglis |
| 5. | Steve Turner |
| 6. | Scott Hill |
| 7. | Cooper Cronk |
| 8. | Antonio Kaufusi |
| 9. | Cameron Smith |
| 10. | Brett White |
| 11. | David Kidwell |
| 12. | Ryan Hoffman |
| 13. | Dallas Johnson |
| Reserve Bench |
| 14. | Garret Crossman |
| 15. | Michael Crocker |
| 16. | Ben Cross |
| 17. | Nathan Friend |
| 18. | Jake Webster |
| 19. | Jeremy Smith |
| 20. | Adam Blair |
| (three to be omitted) |
Bellamy has added three players to the squad that took on the Eels in the Qualifying Final.
Greg Inglis and Brett White return from injury, while Jeremy Smith is also named on the extended
interchange bench.
Meanwhile, Bellamy said the Dragons have the most talented roster in the NRL for a number of years and
would be desperate to silence critics who claim it had under-performed.
"I think they have had the best list in the competition for the last few years," Bellamy said.
"They always seem to be favourites at the start of the year and there isn't too many games they start
they're not expected to win.
"I'm not sure why they haven't won a comp. They're not easy things to win, but it probably does build a
bit of pressure on them."
The Dragons are set to field at least eight players with Test or State-of-Origin experience.
NRL Premiership - Second Preliminary Final
Melbourne Storm vs St George-Illawarra Dragons
Telstra Stadium, Sydney
Saturday Night, September 23
Kick-Off: 7:45pm (local time/AEST)
Live Coverage on Channel 9 from 7:30pm (NSW/QLD/VIC), and replayed Fox Sports 2 from 9:00am Sunday morning
(AEST).
| 
