Melbourne 40
Brisbane 10
The most consistent team of the decade now has a chance to become the greatest after Melbourne booked a NRL grand final showdown with Parramatta with a 40-10 annihilation of Brisbane last night.
The Storm were simply dominant in the seven-tries-to-two victory as they secured a spot in their fourth straight grand final and a chance to add to their 2007 premiership.
It is the first time since Parramatta in 1981-84 that a team has reached the decider in four successive seasons.
The Storm booked their date with destiny in style, the emphatic victory continuing their irresistible finals form after a 40-12 thumping of minor premiers two weeks ago.
Fullback Billy Slater (two) and centre Greg Inglis (three) scored some breathtaking tries at Etihad Stadium but it was the performance of five-eighth Brett Finch that also stood out.
Finch set up two tries and is now set to become the story of the grand final as he faces the former teammates and club he walked out on just four weeks into the 2009 season.
Finch took just three minutes to make his mark on Saturday's game, throwing a superb pass for Will Chambers to score untouched and spark a rampant first half for a 22-0 lead at the break.
The former Eel was at it again almost immediately into the second term, busting through the line from a scrum to offload for Inglis to score his second of the night.
Inglis scored his third with an 80m intercept while Slater capped the victory in front of 27,687 fans when he latched onto a Cameron Smith kick in the 73rd minute.
It took Slater's amazing record to 13 tries in his last five appearances at the enclosed stadium, a tally which should have been 14 but referee Jared Maxwell refused to check the fullback's effort in the 12th minute even though the ball was resting on the tryline.
Slater left no doubt with spectacular solo effort in the 20th minute when he broke out of the clutches of two defenders and grubbered for himself to score in the corner.
The star fullback didn't just score tries, he saved two.
He joined Cooper Cronk and Inglis for a first-half trysaver on Ben Te'o, then denied Tonie Carroll with a superb solo tackle midway through the second half.
It was a dark night for the Broncos, who looked a shadow of the side which had won their last seven games and couldn't find a genuine replacement for injured halfback Peter Wallace.
Utility Alex Glenn, the man named in the No.7 jersey but replaced by Carroll in the run-on side, crawled across in the 59th minute while Israel Folau scored off a kick after the final siren.
Adding to Brisbane's woes, centre Justin Hodges was put on report for a mid-air tackle on Dane Nielsen in the 66th minute that could result in a suspension during the Four-Nations tour.
* NRL grand final
Melbourne v Parramatta
Sunday, October 4
ANZ Stadium, Sydney
- NZ HERALD ONLINE