Melbourne aren't counting on star Parramatta playmaker Dylan Brown being the weak link in his return from injury for their NRL qualifying final on Saturday night.
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Nor are they expecting a seventh straight finals victory over the Eels to come easy at Suncorp Stadium.
Brown, 20, has missed the past month following ankle surgery but Storm coach Craig Bellamy didn't see him as an obvious target for their attack.
"He's a very talented player," Bellamy said of Brown.
"He's pretty tough as well - he's probably one of the better defensive halves in the competition that you see.
"I'm not sure how much preparation he's had in the last couple of weeks but if he's anything like he was all season, he's a handful."
Statistics back up Bellamy's comments about Brown's defence, the youngster nailing 61 one-on-one tackles this season which is equal second most in the competition.
Melbourne have won all six finals games they've played against Parramatta dating to 2006 and last year thumped the Eels 36-0.
But the 2017 final at AAMI Park sticks in Bellamy's mind as a reminder that it's not entirely one-sided.
The Eels took advantage of a Cameron Munster sin-binning to ambush the Storm and almost caused a boilover.
"I remember we played them in '17 and we were minor premiers and they finished fourth and they came down to Melbourne and I think the score was 18-16," Bellamy said.
"They had us at half-time and with all due respect they probably deserved to win that game.
"Parramatta have probably their strongest team back now so I'm sure it will be a real semi-final."
Parramatta can also take heart that they won their round 15 match this season, with the 14-0 victory the first time they've kept the Storm scoreless.
A win will see Melbourne advance to the preliminary final, which will again be held at Suncorp Stadium.
While it's not home, it's actually better - the Storm have won seven straight games at Suncorp Stadium and 19 of 23 at the venue.
STATS THAT MATTER
* Parramatta coach Brad Arthur's three wins from 10 games against Melbourne is his worst record against any opponent.
* Eels prop Regan Campbell-Gillard has averaged 154 metres this season, easily his best for any season, however he averages just 84 metres against Storm, his worst against any opponent.
* Storm flyer Josh Addo-Carr will look to extend his try-scoring record at Suncorp Stadium, having scored a try seven straight games there.
(Source: Fox Sports Stats)
Australian Associated Press
