Melbourne Storm players have responded to ex-teammate Brandon Smith’s assessment of their “putrid” finals performance ahead of a semi final meeting this weekend.
Smith, who left the Storm at the end of last season to join the Roosters, did not mince his words when breaking down his old team’s 26-0 loss to the Brisbane Broncos in an interview with News Corp.
Storm star Cameron Munster was notified of the sledge and said “we’ll see who has the last laugh” ahead of the meeting with Smith and the Roosters.
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“Did he say that?” he asked when told about the sledge.
”He pretty much says whatever comes off the top of his head, a little bit like myself.
“But we’ll see who has the last laugh on Friday.”
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Smith will go head to head with Storm hooker Harry Grant this weekend, and Grant said his old teammate wasn’t far off the mark with his assessment.
“It was a very poor performance and he’s a character of the game so you don’t want to deter him from speaking the truth,” he said.
“It’s funny the way the script has panned out for him, coming back for a final against Melbourne Storm. We know the player he is and what he’s capable of.”
Both the Storm and Roosters are coming off bruising week one finals encounters, with Ryan Papenhuyzen and Xavier Coates picking up injuries for Melbourne, while the Roosters will be without Joseph Suaalii, Joseph Manu and Billy Smith.
Friday night’s meeting with the Storm will be Smith’s third since joining the Roosters. He lost both matches against his old side during the home and away season.
Smith played the first 107 games of his NRL career with the Storm after making his debut in 2017.