Melbourne Storm suffered their fourth defeat from their past five games when beaten by the struggling Warriors in round 8, 16 – 10.

It was the second unexpected loss in as many weeks for the Storm after the Raiders snatched victory from them in the final minutes of their round 7 match.

The string of losses see Melbourne uncharacteristically outside of the eight with four wins to their names – all by margins of four points or less, and by their Coach Craig Bellamy’s own admission, his players “appear to look a bit foreign to each other”.

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The departure of last year’s five-eighth Gareth Widdop, has had a larger effect than many would’ve anticipated and whilst the “big three” – Slater, Smith and Cronk still form the back-bone of the team, the support and sometime relief that Widdop supplied, is being sorely missed.

With the Origin season only weeks away and the Storm surely to be missing the above three players and possibly Ryan Hoffman, the Melbourne Storm are under pressure and need a win.

There’ll be little relief for them this week though as they face the Sea Eagles who are coming off an emphatic 54 – 18 win over the Raiders in round 8, their third win on the trot.

After a narrow and controversially win over the improving Cowboys, the Sea Eagles made sure there was no cause for concern against the Raiders, scoring three times in the opening 15 minutes of the game and extended that margin as they game went on.

Half-back Daley Cherry-Evans was at his best, playing a leading part in six of Manly’s nine tries.

Manly’s line-up this week will be missing some key players in the shape of Centre Jamie Lyon and Glenn Stewart, along with regular five-eight Kieran Foran.

These two sides have produced some absolute classic matches in recent years and their clash in round 1, which Melbourne won in Golden Point time after trailing 20 – 0 in the first half, was no exception.

It was the Storm’s third win from their past five matches against Manly and with sides playing out a 10 all draw during that time, Manly can only boast two victories from seven clashes since 2011.

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Despite the overall record and Manly missing some players, the Storm just haven’t been themselves in the past month and it’s hard to back them with the confidence needed at $1.45.

Melbourne are a Champion side and with the spotlight well and truly on them at the moment, expect an improved effort last week however it’s hard to back them with the confidence that is needed at $1.45. Manly at $2.85 appeals more.

Odds Comparison:

Melbourne Storm	1.45	1.45	1.44	1.45	1.45	1.48
Manly Sea Eagles	2.85	2.85	2.85	2.85	2.85	2.75

All odds are subject to change. Odds listed are correct at the time of the latest update.

Teams:

Melbourne Storm:
Billy Slater, Sisa Waqa, Will Chambers, Mahe Fonua, Young Tonumaipea, Ben Hampton, Cooper Cronk, Jesse Bromwich, Cameron Smith (c), Bryan Norrie, Kevin Proctor, Ryan Hoffman, Ryan Hinchcliffe. Interchange: Kenny Bromwich, Tohu Harris, Mitch Garbutt, George Rose
Ins: Will Chambers
Outs: Justin O’Neill (knee, round 18)
Other unavailables: Ben Roberts (knee, round 12), Matt Duffie (ACL, season), Jordan McLean (suspension, round 13), Slade Griffin (ACL, season)

Manly Sea Eagles:
Brett Stewart, Jorge Taufua, Peta Hiku, Steve Matai, David Williams, Jack Littlejohn, Daly Cherry-Evans, Josh Starling, Matt Ballin, Brenton Lawrence, Anthony Watmough, Justin Horo, Jamie Buhrer. Interchange: James Hasson, Dunamis Lui, Jesse Sene-Lefao, Jason King
Ins: David Williams, James Hasson
Outs: Jamie Lyon (knee, round 10), Glenn Stewart (ankle, round 14)
Other unavailables: Tony Satini (knee, indefinite)