A part of Craig Bellamy would love it if he and Cameron Munster could bow out of Melbourne together.
But as the pair consider their NRL futures, Bellamy remains committed to supporting Munster whether or not he signs with expansion franchise PNG.
Storm veteran Munster turned the heat on Bellamy on Wednesday by claiming he would reject interest from the Chiefs for 2028 if Bellamy remained Melbourne’s coach for that season.
Bellamy re-signed with the Storm through 2028 in February, but the master mentor’s diagnosis with a neurodegenerative condition has since cast doubt over his future.
On Thursday, Bellamy reiterated “the next year or two I’ll be finishing up” but did not say whether his health would permit coaching on as late as 2028.
Bellamy handed Munster his NRL debut in 2014 and coached him in two premiership triumphs, with the 31-year-old now the Storm’s longest-serving active player.
For Bellamy, the chance to bow out together would be fitting, but Munster indicated on Wednesday he may not be able to wait for the coach to make his own decision.
“I’d love to go right through my coaching career with him, ending about the same time,” Bellamy said.
“[But] he’s got a decision to make. He’ll make the right decision for what’s right for his family. He’s got the right to do that.
“I’ll back ‘Mun’ up, whatever he wants to do.”
Munster remains sidelined with a knee injury for Friday’s clash with resurgent Canterbury and is now joined on the pine by captain and hooker Harry Grant.
In a season of injury carnage, Bellamy said Grant’s hamstring problem was another big blow for the 12th-placed Storm.
“Any team losing their captain, that’s a big loss, but Harry especially,” Bellamy said.
“He’s always in the middle of the play whether it be with the ball or without the ball.”
Injuries, roster turnover and a seven-game losing streak early in the season have all left the Storm’s finals hopes hanging by a thread ahead of round 22.
A loss to the Bulldogs would ensure they miss the top eight for only the second time under Bellamy, and first since mass salary cap breaches consigned them to the wooden spoon in 2010.
It would also mark a 12th loss of the year — the most the Storm would have suffered in any of their 24 seasons under Bellamy.
“We know it’s going to be a tough ask tomorrow night, but we’ve had a good week’s preparation with the guys we’ve had,” Bellamy said.
AAP
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