Warriors Fly Into Face of Gale-Force Storm

While the New Zealand Warriors head into the traditional Anzac Day clash with the Melbourne Storm armed with reinforcements, the NRL frontrunners ominously appear at optimum strength as they seek to continue their flawless start to 2012 with a record eighth successive victory.

Pending a final assessment at their solitary full training session today, the unbeaten Storm will carry their full complement of test stars and State of Origin hopefuls into a clash that has proved unusually problematic for the competition favourites.

The Warriors head to AAMI Park with doubts over two strike weapons – mercurial halfback Shaun Johnson and match-winning wing Manu Vatuvei – and have included Pita Godinet and Glen Fisiiahi as a precaution.

In contrast, the Storm's spine of Billy Slater, Cooper Cronk and Cameron Smith all emerged unscathed from the Kangaroos 20-12 Anzac test victory at Eden Park on Friday, likewise Jesse Bromwich, who made a strong debut in the Kiwis front row.

Ryan Hoffman and Ryan Hinchcliffe should also be available after Sunday's City versus Country trial for the NSW Origin team while, in a positive for the ninth-placed Warriors, fellow second-rower Feleti Mateo was named to start tomorrow night after also getting though the match in Mudgee.
Although the Storm are warm favourites, history suggests the Warriors, despite their fluctuating form, should not be discounted.

The Storm have won only four of their last 10 matches against the Warriors and last year succumbed 18-14 in the Anzac Day fixture before being eliminated in the preliminary final by an eight-point margin. Melbourne has also proved susceptible after a long lay-off between games, four of their six losses last season followed a break of eight days or longer, though head coach Craig Bellamy has worked on remedying that deficiency, to good effect.

The Storm had a nine-day preparation between the rounds five win over Newcastle and sixth-round victims North Queensland.

This 11-day gap since edging the Bulldogs 12-6 is the longest they have encountered but Bellamy was confident he had settled on an effective formula to manage the downtime.

"We've changed a couple of things around for our longer breaks and we've had one go and it seemed to go OK," Bellamy said, referring to the 42-18 win thumping of North Queensland.

"We've got to make sure we get the rest right and this time it is different. We gave the players four days off so it will be interesting to see how they come up."

Bellamy was satisfied with the effort of his non-representative players when they returned to training on Friday but expected a more polished performance with the stars back on board today.

"We are expecting to get better, when you have a break, the first thing that gets a bit rusty is your skills."
Attention to detail at training has been a priority for the Storm and a key to their unbeaten start to the campaign.
"We don't tolerate too much dropped ball or any errors in our session," said Smith, the Kangaroos and Storm's hooker and captain.

"We try to take that into our games. So far this season it's worked out really well."
That qualifies as the understatement of the season.

The Storm equalled their best start to a season when a superb defensive effort thwarted the Bulldogs and are now attempting to be the first club to notch eight wins in a row from the opening round since the Roosters managed 10 straight in 1996.

They only conceded two line breaks against the Bulldogs and, for the fourth consecutive game, their error count was in single figures – reasons the opponents in their 11 home games have scored more than 10 points only on two occasions.

With Slater, Cronk and Smith synchronised and English five-eighth Gareth Widdop maturing, the Storm complement the NRL's stingiest defence with the most prolific attack.
The Storm have so far amassed 210 points, 36 more than North Queensland while the 85 points conceded is 11 less than Brisbane.

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One-Time Foes United On Plan For Two Stadiums to Cover All Codes

In a ''back to the future'' strategy, two long-term rugby league administrators have combined to rationalise the use of NSW government-controlled stadiums, possibly leading to the return of the long-abandoned Sydney ''match of the day''.

The former National Rugby League director of football operations and now Sports Minister, Graham Annesley, has appointed former league supremo John Quayle chairman of a new statutory body called Venues NSW.

Annesley, by negotiating the legislation through the State Parliament late last year and appointing Quayle to the position in February, has shown he is still a step ahead of the NRL club chief executives and chairmen he once administered.

Bosses of clubs such as the Rabbitohs, Bulldogs, Dragons and Roosters have recently raised the prospect of a heavily-promoted weekly rugby league match being played at one of Sydney's two major grounds, Allianz Stadium or ANZ Stadium.

Venues NSW has been empowered to take control of government-owned stadiums and entertainment centres in Newcastle, Wollongong and Parramatta away from local trusts where they compete against each other for resources and events.

The new statutory body will not embrace the Sydney Cricket Ground Trust that also controls Allianz Stadium, nor will it have any immediate influence over ANZ Stadium. However, the legislation does allow Venues NSW to ultimately take control of all NSW government-owned stadiums.
Annesley admitted a two-stadium policy for major rugby league, rugby union and soccer matches in
Sydney was a long-term possibility.

''Sometime these things come in small steps,'' the minister said. ''The SCG is an iconic venue and controlled by a trust. It's not on the current agenda for Venues NSW to take it under its umbrella but the legislation does allow us to add venues.

''Homebush is owned by a private consortium but does come back to government ownership in approximately 2031.

''The three we've put together for now - Newcastle, Wollongong and Parramatta - are very similar venues and we believe we will achieve economies of scale, superior bargaining powers and stop, say, Newcastle and Wollongong bidding against each other for events where the only winners are the promoters.''

Annesley, who is the member for Miranda, was guarded on the long-term possibility of all existing suburban rugby league stadiums, such as the Sharks' Toyota Stadium, being closed and all games played at Allianz and ANZ.

This is the situation in Melbourne where all AFL games are played at either the MCG or Etihad Stadium, with famous old suburban grounds, such as Essendon's Windy Hill, now used as training venues.

''It's paying dividends for the AFL,'' he said, in reference to big crowds and superior facilities. ''But how long does it take to make the change? I understand there was initial resistance in Melbourne.''
Typically, Quayle was more direct, fully endorsing the AFL model.

After resigning as ARL chief executive in 1996, he was in charge of venues at the Sydney Olympics and then advised Athens, London and Rio de Janeiro on the modelling of their facilities for the 2004, 2012 and 2016 Olympics respectively.

He was a consultant much in demand for the Pan American Games and Asian Games in the Middle East.

''I've looked at sport around the world and it's inevitable we are moving to shared facilities where the one stadium can host multiple events in different sporting codes,'' he said. ''The AFL model is the best. Queensland, with Suncorp for the rugby codes and soccer and Ballymore for AFL and cricket, is also very good.''

Asked if he supported a new stadium in Sydney's west to cater for the latest A-League franchise, he said he would prefer to close in Parramatta Stadium with stands at either end and cater for another 10,000 fans.

Too much money had been spent by past governments reacting to emotional cries to renovate Belmore, Kogarah and Leichhardt, he said.

He will head a board of eight, embracing the chairs of the Illawarra (Wollongong), Hunter (Newcastle) and western Sydney (Parramatta) local venue centres, as well as state government appointees, including former Magpie great, John Dorahy.

''What we will be doing is designed for the next 20 years, not next year,'' Quayle said.
''No longer should we take emotion into decision making and invest in facilities which may operate only in the short term.''

Annesley and Quayle, opponents in the 1995-97 Super League war when Annesley was a referee in the rival competition, have obviously discarded any emotional shackles from that era to work together for the future of their state.

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