Craig Bellamy’s record since he was given his first head coaching position, at the Melbourne Storm in 2003, is incredible. Seven years at the helm, four consecutive grand finals and two premierships, including this year’s title earned with a thrilling 23-16 win over Parramatta. It is little wonder he is regarded as one of the best minds in the game. But he had to use every bit of nous this year as the Storm did it the hard way through most of the season. But Bellamy and his support staff managed to take a team that had suffered a significant loss of quality players during the pre-season and recast it into an effective unit using an outer shell of lesser lights shaped around its core of genuine superstars. As NSW coach, Bellamy again failed to overturn Queensland’s State of Origin dominance, but has announced he will go around in the Blues job again next season. Stathi Paxinos
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