NRL: Kiwi teenager makes Storm debut count

Matt Duffie celebrates scoring a try for the Storm against the Warriors in Melbourne. Photo / Getty Images

Kiwi teenager Matt Duffie was determined to make every minute count in his NRL debut against the Warriors.

Duffie was one of the Melbourne Storm's heroes at Etihad Stadium on Sunday night, the 19-year-old providing a rare feel-good factor as the club closed a disastrous week by steamrolling the Warriors 40-6.

Melbourne's salary cap shame was always destined to relegate Duffie's promotion to a pre-match afterthought but the strapping wing subsequently made an indelible impression with two tries against a club he idolised while growing up in Auckland and Christchurch.

"It's been a pretty insane week," Duffie admitted.

He found out last Thursday he was playing "a couple of hours before the scandal broke" as the Storm surrendered their 2007 and 2009 premierships amid a raft of penalties.

"It was a weird feeling. I was happy to be in and then gutted, especially for the guys that had won those premierships. They were devastated."

Incredibly, Duffie was centimetres away from equalling his tryscoring exploits against the Warriors under-20 side on Anzac Day last year.

He trod on the touchline in the 20th minute as he stretched to score and in the final quarter he was denied a hat-trick when failing to ground Billy Slater's grubber to the on-goal.

"I should have got that first one," Duffie said, not that he beat himself up for long.

Three minutes later he crossed in the same right-hand corner and in the 48th minute he further justified his elevation at Luke MacDougall's expense when he reeled in a floated Billy Slater pass as the Storm continued to terrorise rookie Warriors wing Bill Tupou.

Duffie was not alone in making giant strides on debut. Gareth Widdop was making his first appearance while the first grade career of Auckland-born centre partner Willie Isa is also in its infancy.

The quality of their performances was encouraging for a club in crisis, given their determination to ride out the storm.

"There's a bunch of us from the under-20s that came up.

"We've stuck together and we really love this club, we want to keep it going," he said.

Duffie has had to bide his time behind Anthony Quinn and MacDougall, but after Sunday night someone associated with the Storm might genuinely contemplate a positive future.

"I was really proud to be out there with the boys, I loved every minute of it."

- NZPA