PANTHERS
For the third week in a row the Panther walked away with the win when starting outsiders in the betting.

First it was against Canterbury, then St. George and last Monday night, it was a Matt Moylan field goal in the final minute of plan that ensured the Panther remained in the top four with a 23 – 22 win over the Cowboys.

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The Panthers continue to defy the expectation that their form will taper off with a growing injury list but, led by half-back Jamie Soward who took the man-of-the-match honours Monday night in a brilliant display against his opposite number Johnathan Thurston, the Panthers are thriving on the challenge.

Unfortunately an integral part of their success this year, hooker James Segeyaro who limped off late in the game Monday night with an ankle injury, has been named in the staring line up but his inclusion should be closely monitored.

He has provided plenty of spark around the rucks for the Panthers and that’ll be required as the face off against the Storm this week.

It’s a tough run home for the Panthers who still have to take on Manly and the Warriors in the final two weeks of the competition however, who is to say they can’t add a few more to wins to their record this year given the current believe in the squad must be sky-high.

STORM
After a surprise loss to the Knights in round 22, the Storm were back in the winners stall and to their best with a 48 – 6 win over the Sharks at AAMI Park last week.

I was the Storm’s fourth win from their past five games during with time they’ve posted at least 28 points per game.

It was a Storm clinic as they ran in nine tries, most from set plays that were being executed with the precision expected from Craig Bellamy.

It moved the Melbourne club to within reach of the top four and will have those teams and all that will be involved in the finals, hoping not to draw the Storm in the opening week.

The Storm are 5-5 away from home this year and lost unexpectedly when visiting Sportingbet Stadium last year however, given their current form and that they’re going with the same squad as the last two weeks, they’ll be a tough nut for the Panthers to crack.

HEAD TO HEAD
The Storm have won twelve of the last thirteen games against the Panthers however, the Panther sole win came as recently as last year and when the two sets met in round 2 this year, it was only two Cooper Cronk field goals that saw the Storm home 18 – 17.

That was the second time that the total match score failed to reach the line for the game.

With the Panthers boasting a 8 – 2 record at home this year and this and this being the first top eight side Melbourne has faced since losing to Canterbury 6 – 4 in round 18, the Panthers are well placed to challenge strongly the Storm strongly again but the Storm may just have too many points in them.

TIPS : Storm 1 – 12.

Teams:

Panthers: Matt Moylan, Josh Mansour, Dean Whare, Jamal Idris, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Will Smith, Jamie Soward, Nigel Plum, James Segeyaro, Sam McKendry, Sika Manu, Matt Robinson, Adam Docker.
Interchange: Lewis Brown, Ben Murdoch-Masila, Jeremy Latimore, Tim Grant.

Storm: Billy Slater, Sisa Waqa, Will Chambers, Mahe Fonua, Marika Koroibete, Ben Roberts, Cooper Cronk, Jesse Bromwich, Cameron Smith (c), Bryan Norrie, Kevin Proctor, Ryan Hoffman, Ryan Hinchcliffe.
Interchange: Tim Glasby, Tohu Harris, Junior Moors, Jordan McLean.