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AAP | 04/10/09 | 0
AUDIO - On the sideline with a jubilant Cameron Smith
AUDIO - Cooper Cronk: ''You won't be able to wipe the smile off my face''
AUDIO - Craig Bellamy: ''We worked hard and got lucky''
AUDIO - Departing Storm winger Steve Turner talks to the CCT
Melbourne elevated their standing to sit amongst the greatest NRL sides of all time as they withstood a furious Parramatta finish to run out 23-16 winners for their second premiership in three years at ANZ Stadium on Sunday.
Playing in their fourth grand final in a row, the Storm were simply brilliant as they brought an unhappy ending to the fairytale that was Parramatta's Cinderella run to the decider, with Billy Slater named Clive Churchill Medallist for his man of the match performance.
Not even the relentless defence of Nathan Hindmarsh, who came up with 62 tackles as he threw his body about in a desperate bid to erase the memory of his 2001 grand final heartache, could keep the Eels in the contest.
This was the Melbourne machine at its best, grinding the opposition into the ground before unleashing the likes of Greg Inglis and Slater.
The Storm took a vice-like grip early and never let go as they buried the memories of last year's record loss to Manly, but they were forced to do it the hard way with the Eels scoring twice inside the last ten minutes to close to within a converted try.
With the vast majority of the 82,538 crowd - the biggest since 2001 when the Eels last made it to a grand final - willing them on, Parramatta surged late with Joel Reddy scoring off a Jeff Robson bomb before Fuifui Moimoi trampled over several defenders to cross out wide.
"I was going to call for the trainer to get a change of speedos," said Storm captain Cameron Smith with a chuckle when quizzed about the gaming becoming so tight at the death.
A Billy Slater drop near his own line presented the Eels with another invitation only for Todd Lowrie to be left with the ball on the last tackle when any other option would have been better.
The Storm, on the back of a controversial stripping penalty against Moimoi on Slater, regained composure, before erupting in a series of hugs and high fives as Inglis piloted over a field goal with three minutes on the clock.
"This is all I've ever wanted to do," said Storm five-eighth Brett Finch, who was shown the door by the Eels after four games this year.
"If I did not do it, I would have had something sitting in the bottom of my guts for the rest of my life.
"It doesn't matter who we beat, I said that all week."
Having snowballed their way into the grand final on the back of ten wins from their last 11 matches, the Eels went to water on the biggest stage with the Storm scoring after just five minutes through Ryan Hoffman, who ran over a non-existent Robson in defence.
Having been brilliant against the Bulldogs last week, Robson was a target in defence, and it seemed to affect his attacking game with the Eels let down by poor last play options.
The Storm were having no such trouble and it was no surprise when Cooper Cronk put Adam Blair over for a 10-0 lead which they took to the halftime break.
The Eels came out strongly after the break with Moimoi leading the way with some punishing defence - and it carried through to their attack with Eric Grothe slamming it down for a 10-6 scoreline.
Melbourne weren't about to give this away however and they hit back with a double blow through their two superstars, Inglis and Slater scoring thanks to some sensational lead-up work by Cronk.
Like their storming finish to the season, the Eels left their best until last, but while they closed to within six points, they were unable to finish the job.
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