MATCH CENTRE
MATCH CENTRE
ROUND 14, 2017

SHARKS

V

STORM

StormMEL WIN BY 5
13
FT
18
Southern Cross Group Stadium
2017-06-08T09:50:00Z

Preview

Well, where do we begin?

It doesn't get any bigger than this to open round 14.

The Sharks enter round 14 off the back of a bye, with their Origin representatives getting plenty of rest coming into the clash with their arch-rivals.

The Storm, meanwhile, carved up the Knights quite easily last week, priming themselves for a crack at overturning a recently rough run of results against the reigning premiers.

Let's start at the back and work our way up.

Billy Slater against Valentine Holmes is a mouth-watering matchup in itself, with the two Queenslanders vying for a berth in the upcoming Maroons squad as both are in exceptional offensive and defensive form.

Origin centres Jack Bird and Will Chambers will go head to head once again in a show of strength and speed.

The battle of the halves - as in any game - will be a key with Origin counterparts James Maloney and Cooper Cronk matching up. The Sharks have successfully nullified Cronk's impact in recent meetings and will look to do so again this week.

The battle of the forwards will where the game will be won, with both packs in excellent form in 2017.

Andrew Fifita is arguably the best in the game along with Jesse Bromwich, who made a solid return last week following suspension. Cameron Smith's apparent sternum injury won't keep him out of Thursday's clash as he prepares to renew hostilities with Paul Gallen while in-form duo Felise Kaufusi and Tohu Harris come up against the battle-hardened pair of Luke Lewis and Wade Graham.

It's been Cronulla physically imposing defence that has caused issues for the well-organised Storm in recent times, winning three of their past four encounters, however, the Storm are a different side with Billy Slater, and particularly the form that he is in.

The Storm are 6-0 away from home in 2017 and while the Sharks have a poor home record, both of those stats will count for little.

The bookies can't split them, and neither can we.

90-minute draw, anyone?

Sharks by 2.

Team Lists

Team Stats


Sharks

Storm

All Runs
MATCH
177
2026 AVG.
1416
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
174.9
2026 AVG.
1574
2026 TOTAL
All Run Metres
MATCH
1639.3
2026 AVG.
13114
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
1562.3
2026 AVG.
14061
2026 TOTAL
Line Breaks
MATCH
5.6
2026 AVG.
45
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
5.2
2026 AVG.
47
2026 TOTAL
Offloads
MATCH
9.4
2026 AVG.
75
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
8.3
2026 AVG.
75
2026 TOTAL
Kick Metres
MATCH
584.6
2026 AVG.
4677
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
557.1
2026 AVG.
5014
2026 TOTAL
Forty Twenty Kicks
MATCH
0.1
2026 AVG.
1
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
0.1
2026 AVG.
1
2026 TOTAL
Tackles Made
MATCH
334.8
2026 AVG.
2678
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
349
2026 AVG.
3141
2026 TOTAL
Missed Tackles
MATCH
31.9
2026 AVG.
255
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
33.1
2026 AVG.
298
2026 TOTAL
Penalties
MATCH
5.9
2026 AVG.
47
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
4.7
2026 AVG.
42
2026 TOTAL
Errors
MATCH
11.4
2026 AVG.
91
2026 TOTAL
2026 AVG.
2026 TOTAL
9.8
2026 AVG.
88
2026 TOTAL

Player Stats



Summary