Two-time Melbourne Storm premiership halfback Cooper Cronk is backing his former side to get the job done against the Bulldogs on Friday night and believes the qualifying final will be won off the field—not on it.
Speaking on the Matty and Cronk show on Fox League, Cronk declared the most influential figures in the second versus third match-up would be Craig Bellamy and Cameron Ciraldo.
“I don’t think it’s two players on the field who will determine who wins,” Cronk told co-host Matthew Johns.
“In terms of Storm versus the Dogs, I think this is won in the coaches box.”
MORE: Wishart reveals upside of Jahrome Hughes injury struggles
Cronk then backed his former mentor Bellamy to turn the misfiring Storm side around as its NRL finals campaign begins, bolstered by the added motivation of avenging the club’s 2024 grand final loss.
“Can Craig Bellamy pull out the magic dust and get that team back on track?” Cronk asked.
“You don’t forget how to ride a bike—this team can play, it’s just fallen off a cliff in the last two weeks.
“With no Papenhuyzen and Hughes this week, they almost need the rest of the team to focus on stopping the opposition and doing their role, and trust Harry Grant and Cam Munster to come up with the plays.”
The Bulldogs have ‘dropped their DNA defensively’
Switching to the Storm’s opponents, Cronk believes coaching decisions will be just as critical to the Bulldogs’ chances of causing an upset that would secure a home preliminary final at Accor Stadium.
“The Dogs were the best team for the majority of the year when they were doubling down on their defence, but then they made a couple of (tactical) decisions,” he said.
“They’ve thought ‘if we’re going to beat the best teams, we’re going to need to be more creative with the ball in hand’—but I think they’ve dropped their DNA defensively.
“Their middle forwards need to get back to swarming the opposition.”
Given the high stakes, Matthew Johns asked if coach Cameron Ciraldo might even consider swallowing his pride with a late change to bring reserve Toby Sexton back in at number seven alongside Lachlan Galvin, and push Matt Burton to the centres?
“Honestly, you’re not far off the mark,” Cronk admitted, before pointing to the negative impact on the Bulldogs’ long kicking game by moving Burton.
“I don’t think they’d do it, Sexton’s on the bench for me.”
The Storm host the Bulldogs in the opening game of the 2025 NRL finals series at AAMI Park on Friday night with kick off at 7.50pm.