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<\/p>\nMelbourne ironman Jahrome Hughes returned from a broken arm to break Cronulla hearts.<\/p>\n
And fellow Storm stars Cameron Munster, Harry Grant and Ryan Papenhuyzen all produced their own magical moments to help lift the Storm into yet another grand final.<\/p>\n
One of rugby league\u2019s most successful clubs in the modern era triumphed 22-14 over a spirited Cronulla in front of a packed house at AAMI Park.<\/p>\n
The Sharks were excellent defensively, just as they have been the past month, and were well in the hunt when Nicho Hynes kicked a penalty goal to reduce the margin to a converted try with just over 20 minutes to go.<\/p>\n
But the week off for the Storm, and the class of their key players, paved the way for Melbourne to book another appearance in Sunday week\u2019s decider. It will be their seventh grand final since 2012. It is coach Craig Bellamy\u2019s 11th grand final in 23 years.<\/p>\n
Their record is truly amazing \u2013 and so are Hughes and Munster and Grant and Papenhuyzen.<\/p>\n
Hughes scored a try and displayed absolute toughness to take on the line and test out the forearm he fractured just three weeks ago.<\/p>\n
How many fans would have truly predicted the halfback would be back so soon? He is a tough hombre who once again proved he lives for the big moments.<\/p>\n
Papenhuyzen and Munster combined for a try just before the break to put Melbourne ahead 16-8.<\/p>\n
And Grant led from the front, forever testing the Sharks line and even setting up the final try. You can only hope the match review committee do not bother spotting him for a potential hip-drop tackle that left Ronnie Mulitalo hobbling out of a tackle.<\/p>\n
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Storm five-eighth Cameron Munster.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Before praising the Storm any further, you have to take your hat off to Cronulla.<\/p>\n
They crash out in week three of the finals for a second straight season, but they had a red-hot crack, and refused to buckle under the relentless Melbourne pressure that would have cracked most other teams.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll tell you this \u2013 we\u2019re in a better position than we\u2019ve ever been. We\u2019re not going away. We\u2019re not going to get worse,\u201d coach Craig Fitzgibbon said after the loss.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t play very well tonight. We were brave, and our effort was \u2013 it\u2019s pretty hard to fault our effort.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s better than last year. We\u2019re not going away. At the end of the day there\u2019s only two teams that get there, and we fell short again.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Referee Ashley Klein talks to Cronulla halfback Nicho Hynes.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Hynes spilled the ball at a crucial stage of the game when they were pushing for an equaliser, but it was also his lovely pass to Billy Burns that set up one of the Sharks\u2019 first-half tries.<\/p>\n
There are no players of note heading to the Shire next year, while there remain question marks over the future of fullback Will Kennedy.<\/p>\n
The Sharks were entitled to be frustrated when Braydon Trindall was penalised for racing out of the line and putting a shot on Hughes. The pair appeared to clash heads, just as Canberra\u2019s Tom Starling did six days earlier when flattening Sharks prop Tom Hazelton. No action was taken on that occasion, but Cronulla were pinged and forced to defend a fresh set of six on their own line.<\/p>\n