What did we learn after Thursday night’s thrilling grand final rematch between last year’s title-deciding combatants the Melbourne Storm and Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs?

The first half of the round-three encounter at AAMI Stadium belonged to the Storm, who, to most pundits and experts, looked like they’d only gather momentum in the second stanza and build on their 10-0 half-time lead. To many, they seemed to be not only be distancing themselves further and further from the Bulldogs in premiership calculations with each passing minute, but from the rest of the competition, too.

The good news for the visitors was that Melbourne only outscored the ‘Dogs four tries to three, with the Canterbury boys actually finishing ahead in completed sets, 31-29. The Bulldogs also made two more line breaks and seven more tackle busts than the Storm. And who knows what might have eventuated had the refs blown time-off towards the end and granted the ‘Dogs one more tackle on the Storm line? One can only guess how well they would’ve finished, too, with their own big four of Barba, Pritchard, Kasiano and Graham on the paddock.

This blog shouldn’t be mistaken for a Bulldog-centric rant though. To the Storm’s credit they did win the match while making a whopping 129 more tackles than Canterbury, and running 278 less metres with the ball. Craig Bellamy would be excited that his round-three squad featured just nine of the 17 players which collected the trophy last October, highlighting the Storm’s depth which is the envy of the competition.

So, what did we learn after Thursday night’s grand final rematch? That the Storm, whatever form they take, are going to be sitting top two again all year, while the Bulldogs’ mongrel is still there, but this year’s version possesses slightly more kick in the last 20 minutes.

Watch out everyone else …