Cowboys v Storm preview

North Queensland Cowboys v Melbourne Storm
1300SMILES Stadium - Monday 7:00pm

Melbourne will look to keep their strong form going as they travel to Townsville coming against a North Queensland who are yet to register a win for the 2015 season. The Cowboys have been extremely poor in all of their three games and will need to bring their A game if they want to try and defeat this very strong Melbourne Storm outfit.

Vintage Melbourne were almost unstoppable against Cronulla last week piling on 36 points in 60 minutes. Cooper Cronk, Billy Slater and Camneron Smith played brilliantly not to mention a barnstorming effort by Tohu Harris who scored 2 tries.

Melbourne have now recorded 2 wins in the first three rounds and may prove many pundits wrong who in the pre season had Melbourne finsihing outside the top 8. The Storm will look to consolidate their strong start with a win in the far north against the struggling Cowboys.

The boys from Townsville were downright awful against neighbors Brisbane last Friday night. The 44-22 score flattered North Queensland who scored two late tries. Again their defence looked very suspect and they made a phenomenal 47 missed tackles and they will need to rectify that asap if they want to compete with the 2012 premiers.

Last meeting: Round 12 2014 - North Queensland Cowboys 22 Melbourne Storm 0
Despite winning the last clash North Queensland have traditionally struggled against Melbourne. Winning just 8 of 27 clashes against them, including just 5 wins out of 16 at 1800 Smiles Stadium. They will be very keen to change this trend and get off the mark for 2015.

Who to watch: For the Cowboys they will rely heavily on fullback Lachlan Coote who successfully returned from a knee injury last week. Coote was solid without being spectacular in a losing side. He ran for 90 Metres, had 2 tackle busts and 5 tackles. The Cowboys will be hoping that he can find the form that made him a household name for Penrith and add some attacking spark to this stagnant Cowboys attack. Look for Thuston's grubbers in behind the defensive line and Coote to capitalize on. His kick returns are another very valuable asset to his game along with his tackle breaking ability, if he is given any room by the Storm defence then look out!

As for the Storm they will have been delighted with the impact Marika Koroibete has made with the club since his mid season move from the Wests Tigers last year. Koroibete had another quality performance against the Sharks running for 157 Metres, 1 try assist, 6 tackle busts, 4 tackles and 2 line breaks. He has been a nightmare to defend against all season, so far his stats for 2015 are amazing, they include: 532 Metres averaging 177 metres a game, 13 tackle busts, 3 line breaks and 2 offloads. The change in scenery has benefited Marika and he will be one player to keep an eye on for another brilliant performance. Especially with for his left side combination with both Billy Slater and Cooper Cronk who have been running a muck so far this season.

The favourite: North Queensland's woes make this one an easy tip. Melbourne to continue their barnstorming form.

My tip: Can't see North Queensland getting up for this one, the way that Melbourne have been playing it's hard to see them losing this game, Craig Bellamy will have the Storm boys pumped up for this one. North Queensland will have to wait another week to open their account for 2015.

1. Lachlan Coote 2. Matthew Wright 3. Tautau Moga 4. Kane Linnett 5. Antonio Winterstein 6. Michael Morgan 7. Johnathan Thurston 8. Matthew Scott 9. Rory Kostjasyn 10. James Tamou 11. Gavin Cooper 12. Ethan Lowe 13. Jason Taumalolo
Interchange: 14. Jake Granville 15. Kelepi Tanginoa 16. Scott Bolton 17. Ben Hannant 18. John Asiata

1. Billy Slater 2. Young Tonumaipea 3. Will Chambers 4. Kurt Mann 5. Marika Koroibete 6. Blake Green 7. Cooper Cronk 8. Jesse Bromwich 9. Cameron Smith 10. Jordan McLean 11. Kevin Proctor 12. Tohu Harris 13. Dale Finucane
Interchange: 14. Ryan Hinchcliffe 15. Tim Glasby 16. Dayne Weston 17. Felise Kaufusi 18. Tom Learoyd-Lahrs 19. Hymel Hunt

Referees: Ben Cummins, Henry Perenara; Sideline Officials: Russell Turner, Adam Gee; Video Referees: Jared Maxwell, Steve Folkes;

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