Former Test half Trent Barrett believes the Melbourne Storm will not only compete in a fourth successive grand final… they might just win it.
Speaking in the wake of Melbourne’s demolition of reigning premiers Manly on Friday night, Barrett admitted the Storm look to have hit top gear at the right time.
“On the back of that, they can make the grand final and go on and win it," Barrett told BigPond Sports Weekend.
“They were as good as we’ve seen all year… I’ll be surprised if they don’t make the grand final."
A former favourite son of the famous red and whites, Barrett said the Storm's fire-power was superior to that of premiership favourites, St George Illawarra.
“The Dragons have been pretty clinical all year…. but they have a lot more strike than what the Dragons have got.
“The best thing with all of them is that they all know their job and they don’t go outside it. They leave it up to the big names to come up with the big plays… the rest of them just do their job and they do it pretty well.”
After playing under Craig Bellamy in this year's Origin series, Barrett heaped praise on the Storm coach, highlighting his ability to take his side to premiership glory in season 2009.
“He’s got the cattle there that can win him the comp.
“I think he knows when to put the pedal down with them … he is good at that.
“It’d be a fair rap to Craig Bellamy, he’s timed it to the minute… because they have been up and down all year.”
Bellamy’s Storm have timed their red hot form to perfection, catching Manly off guard by executing a perfect game plan in week one of the semi finals.
However, with such an emphatic victory, the question remains - have they shown their hand too early?
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