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Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks Tips - Cronulla cover in tough contest in Melbourne
- Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks expert predictions for Saturday’s Qualifying Final NRL game
- Kick off is at 4:05 PM at AAMI Park
- Cronulla and Melbourne have been strong defensively in the final stages of 2024
- Preview, expert analysis, stats, team news & best bet
Jez's Super Saturday NRL Tips Finals Edition
Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks, Round 2024 - Expert Prediction
The Cronulla Sharks are expected to put up a fight in Melbourne and cover the 10.5-point margin as the underdog.
- Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks, Round 2024 - Expert Prediction
- Head to Head
- Melbourne Storm Form Analysis & Betting Trends
- Melbourne Storm Team News
- Melbourne Storm Team List
- Cronulla Sharks Form Analysis & Betting Trends
- Cronulla Sharks Team News
- Cronulla Sharks Team List
- Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks NRL 2024 Round FAQ’s
It is finals footy and a line of 10+ points is too big in my opinion for any of the matches in week 1 of the finals. The Sharks beat the Storm in Melbourne by 7 points in a fast-paced game that they will do their best to replicate on Saturday.
Both teams have sharpened up their defence in the final stages of the regular season which indicates a low-scoring match which will stay under the game total of 45.5 points and also aid in keeping the margin to single figures.
Xavier Coates has an incredible tryscoring record at AAMI Park and has scored a try in 7 of his last 10 NRL games. Expect the flying winger to be a constant target for the Melbourne attack near the tryline.
- Cronulla’s final 5 losses of the season were by a margin of 8 points or less.
- Both teams have averaged 18 points or less in their final 10 games of the season.
- 3 of 4 Finals Week 1 matches in 2023 had a game total under 39 points.
- Xavier Coates has scored 8 tries in his last 8 matches.
Head to Head
Cronulla were one of 5 teams to beat the Storm in 2024 and just one of 2 teams to beat them at AAMI Park, when they got up against Melbourne 25-18 back in round 10.
The Storm did win the pairs match in 2023, 54-10 and hold a 6-3 advantage in the head to head record since the 2019 season.
Melbourne Storm Form Analysis & Betting Trends
Recent Form
| Last 5 W/L | Last 5 ATS | Last 5 O/U |
|---|---|---|
| 4-1 | 4-1 | 4-1 |
2024 Betting Trends
| $10 ML | Over/Under | 1-12 | 13+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 53.02 | 13-11 | 12-5 | 7-0 |
The Storm are the Minor Premiers and are the most dangerous team in the competition, especially with all of their stars back in the lineup, with the exception of young Sualauvi Fa’alogo.
Melbourne finished the year by winning 11 of their final 13 matches and crushing last year’s grand finalists Brisbane 50-12 in the final round.
Halfback Jahrome Hughes has been the leader in what has been an injury riddled season for the Storm. The New Zealand international has 27 try assists (3rd in NRL) and 26 linebreak assists (3rd in NRL).
The Storm attack certainly came alive in the back half of the season, averaging 32 points per game in their final 9 matches, while their defence averaged just 18 points against.
Melbourne Storm Team News
As mentioned above, Sualauvi Fa’alogo suffered a hamstring injury in the final game of the season and is likely to miss a couple of weeks, however, Ryan Papenhuyzen is back in the No.1, but the young guns strike will be missed off the bench.
After missing last match with illness, Christian Welch will return with Lazarus Vaalepu dropping to the reserves.
Melbourne Storm Team List
1. Ryan Papenhuyzen
2. Will Warbrick
3. Jack Howarth
4. Nick Meaney
5. Xavier Coates
6. Cameron Munster
7. Jahrome Hughes
8. Nelson Asofa-Solomona
9. Harry Grant
10. Josh King
11. Shawn Blore
12. Eli Katoa
13. Trent Loiero
Interchange
14. Tyran Wishart
15. Christian Welch
16. Tui Kamikamica
17. Alec MacDonald
Reserves
18. Grant Anderson
19. Lazarus Vaalepu
20. Kane Bradley
21. Joe Chan
22. Ativalu Lisati
Cronulla Sharks Form Analysis & Betting Trends
Recent Form
| Last 5 W/L | Last 5 ATS | Last 5 O/U |
|---|---|---|
| 4-1 | 3-2 | 3-2 |
2024 Betting Trends
| $10 ML | Over/Under | 1-12 | 13+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 53.73 | 13-11 | 7-6 | 9-2 |
After letting a 22-4 halftime lead sleep against a highly motivated New Zealand side in Shaun Johnson’s final NRL game in round 26, the Sharks responded with a convincing 40-20 win over the Manly Sea Eagles in the final round of the season.
It was a much more controlled performance from the Sharks who controlled possession and won the territory with 57%. Cronulla also broke the Manly line 9 times with Braydon Trindall the attacking focus with 4 linebreak assists and 3 try assists.
The Sharks defence needed improvement after a rough middle-part of the season and Craig Fitzgibbon got a response from his men with his team allowing their opposition an average of just 14 points in the final 6 games of the year.
Halfback Nicho Hynes returned from injury in round 26 and has failed to make a real impact as of yet in his two runs heading into the finals.
Cronulla Sharks Team News
Thomas Hazelton will be given a chance to be fit for Saturday’s match being named in the reserves after suffering a knee injury in the Sharks match against Manly last week.
Oregon Kaufusi returns to the front row with Royce Hunt moving back to the bench.
Cronulla Sharks Team List
1. Will Kennedy
2. Sione Katoa
3. Jesse Ramien
4. Kayal Iro
5. Ronaldo Mulitalo
6. Braydon Trindall
7. Nicho Hynes
8. Toby Rudolf
9. Blayke Brailey
10. Oregon Kaufusi
11. Briton Nikora
12. Teig Wilton
13. Cameron McInnes
Interchange
14. Daniel Atkinson
15. Jack Williams
16. Royce Hunt
17. Sifa Talakai
Reserves
18. Braden Hamlin-Uele
19. Chris Vea'ila
20. Jayden Berrell
21. Samuel Stonestreet
22. Thomas Hazelton
Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks NRL 2024 Qualifying Final FAQ’s
How to watch Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks NRL 2024 Qualifying Final ?
You can watch the Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks NRL 2024 Qualifying Final game via Fox Sports or Kayo Sports. If you are watching from outside of Australia the WatchNRL app is the perfect solution.
How to buy tickets to Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks NRL 2024 Qualifying Final ?
To buy tickets to the Melbourne Storm vs Cronulla Sharks NRL 2024 Qualifying Final game check the NRL website or the official Melbourne Storm site.
Verdict
Cronulla will cover as the underdog in a low-scoring match that stays under the game total.
Xavier Coates will cross the line for the Melbourne Storm.
Xavier Coates will cross the line for the Melbourne Storm.
Cronulla +10.5
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