Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy has faith that new recruit Ben Roberts can rise to the challenge of facing a halves combination he rates as the best in the NRL.

Replacing injured Kangaroos halfback Cooper Cronk, Roberts will partner Ben Hampton against Manly’s Kieran Foran and Daly Cherry-Evans at Brookvale Oval on Saturday night.

Bellamy admitted that Cronk was desperately close to playing but said they opted to take a conservative approach with his shoulder and delay his return to round two.

Roberts, 28, earned a reputation at this former NRL clubs Parramatta and the Bulldogs as a talented but erratic player when put under pressure.

He was late joining the Storm after representing Samoa in the World Cup.

Bellamy said his experience at No.7 gave him an edge over former Bulldog hooker Joel Romelo and rookie Cody Walker as the partner for 22-year-old Hampton, who has only played two NRL games.

“They all performed reasonably well in the trials but we just thought Ben Roberts added a little bit more to our attack than the other two and that’s why we’ve gone for him.

“He has been around and would have played at Brookvale and against Manly plenty of times and would have come head to head with Daly so he’s had plenty of experience there.

“Hopefully it will all come together for him on Saturday night.”

Lock Ryan Hinchcliffe will be given until Friday to prove his fitness but hasn’t trained since hurting his ankle in their trial against the Bulldogs two weeks ago.

Bellamy said he would bring a “big guy” in should Hinchcliffe fail his fitness test.

Naming a seven man bench, one player certain to make the cut is former Manly cult hero George Rose.

Bellamy said the fact that the game was at Brookvale gave Rose a leg-up amongst an impressive pool of forwards.

“Sometimes you don’t take those things into consideration but we have this week.

“George played there for a long time and he’s really looking forward to going back there and playing against his mates and I think that’s a pretty big incentive for him.”

The infamous 2011 Battle of Brookvale, which featured a all-in brawl, is still a talking point, although downplayed by both sides.

Bellamy said he knew what to expect from Manly.

“They’re always ultra competitive side.

“They’re physically and mentally tough and very resilient and have got some real flair with their outside backs and their halves is probably the best combination in the comp.”