Craig Bellamy Acknowledges Storm ‘Might As Well Have Hit the Pub’ Following Defensive Performance

Craig Bellamy acknowledged that his team “might as well have gone to the pub” instead of focusing on defensive practices during the week, following another disheartening display against the Warriors.

After shipping 50 points to Penrith, the Warriors handed 38 to last year’s grand finalists, signalling that changes are needed at the club.

The Storm’s performance was particularly out of character, with a staggering 32 missed tackles over the course of the match.

“We devoted a lot of time to our defence this week, and we might as well have just hit the pub for a few drinks,” Bellamy admitted in his post-match comments.

This loss marks the fourth consecutive defeat for the Storm, following losses to Brisbane, the Cowboys, and the Panthers before facing the Warriors.

Bellamy finds himself in unfamiliar territory, with the team sitting 13th after just six rounds of the season. They could even drop to 14th if the Eels manage to overcome the Titans on Sunday afternoon.

After the match, Bellamy was reluctant to shift all the blame onto the players.

“There are numerous issues at play, so at the end of the day we need to reflect seriously on ourselves,” Bellamy remarked.

“It’s not solely about what the players are doing; it also involves our preparation as coaches, myself included. We all need to assess a range of factors in our approach.”

“We’ve likely been doing things similarly for the last five or six years, so perhaps it’s time for a bit of a shake-up. The past few weeks have been incredibly disappointing, and we need to get to the root of the problem.”

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In addition to the missed tackles, Melbourne managed a completion rate of only 78 per cent and committed 10 errors, while the Warriors maintained a 90 per cent completion rate.

The Storm also incurred seven ruck infringements, with errors and penalties compounding their struggles.

Captain Harry Grant labelled some mistakes as “dumb and avoidable.”

“These errors have certainly become a part of our game, and while every team experiences it, we ideally want to mitigate them,” he stated.

“Both individually and as a team, we need to address these areas to rectify the penalties and errors, particularly those that are unnecessary. We must also exhibit greater grit in defence; it’s unrealistic to expect to go through a match without conceding penalties.”