The Melbourne Storm have the the creme de la creme of the NRL for nearly a decade and have enjoyed great success as well as being able to endure on of the biggest scandals of the decade. They've shown their ability to build a great NRL team from nothing, they've shown the ability to build a great club in a city that doesn't enjoy the love of NRL footy that the rest of us do, they've shown the ability to get through tough times and emerge seemingly unscathed. They are now showing the ability to adapt, to re-invent, to stay relevant in the swift moving world of the NRL.

I wanna start by highlighting the kiwi connection. Along with those fairly reasonable other three players, kiwis have been the common factor. Going back to the likes of Stephen Kearney, Tawera Nikau etc kiwis have played important roles with the Storm and this has only increased over time. When the Storm enjoyed a great run of success, whether it was legal or not, they had one of the best edge back rowers in Adam Blair and the cannonball that is Sika Manu.

They now have arguably the best young prop in the NRL right now, let alone one of the best props in the NRL - Jesse Bromwich. Tohu Harris and Kevin Proctor are big, mobile and skillful and are in my opinion extremely under rated, while the younger Bromwich, Kenny is a nuggety bench forward. The skill of these blokes is giving the Storm something new, something exciting and something worthy of a few words.

The Storm didn't get off to the best start this season, but they currently sit in 7th. Hardly a place of panic. I'm putting my balls on the line and saying right now that the Storm are a team who will ruffle a few feathers of those currently above them. It's based on the belief that Craig Bellamy has had to work pretty hard to guide this team through a bit of a transition which doesn't happen over night, it's taken much of the season so far for them to start to really look dangerous.

I'm pretty bias, but anyone who watches the Storm can see that Jesse Bromwich, Harris and Proctor all feature heavily in nearly everything. Whether it be an offload, a broken tackle, a strong hit up or simply a well run decoy, these guys have been guided by Bellamy to execute their core rolls extremely well.

There are of course other players doing their thing in Melbourne including a big 3 who don't look like slowing down anytime soon. There's not a whole lot to say about Cameron Smith, Cooper Cronk and Billy Slater as we all know what they offer, it has been the players around them who have been equally if not more important. The 2014 Storm aren't exactly the retirement village they have been in the past, similar to the Miami Heat where players would come to win. They only have Bryan Norrie who can't really be chuck in that group cos he's been there for a while after being plucked from park footy, while Ben Roberts isn't exactly old but he's enjoying the Storm environment.

The reason I'm loving the Storm right now is because they are slightly reinventing themselves, adapting to the times. Craig Bellamy won't be coaching much longer but he's definitely setting everything up for a smooth transition, unlike say Sir Alex Ferguson. Where Bellamy has in the past turned severe battlers in to champions, he's now promoting a bit more youth. He knows that the big 3 won't be around for ever so first of all he's gotta get that whole transition motion in action - the earlier the better and but he's also gotta be competitive now. The younger guys are not only good enough to contribute to a winning NRL side, but they must give the likes of Cam Smith a bit of a buzz and freshen everything up a bit.

We've seen Kurt Mann come in to first grade and settle in extremely well in a variety of positions. Cameron Munster did alright in the few games we got a watch of him in action but he'll always have a large void to fill at fullback. Mahe Fonua has put on a bit of extra size and has been shifted to the centres to allow another local Victorian - Young Tonumaipea in on the wing, who has had a very good debut season. Ben Hampton has had a tough road, in and out of the side but he's getting what I like to call 'cheap experience'. Given that his future will lie in the halves, he's probably got the most pressure on him and Bellamy is allowing him a bit of time to get settled.

In Jordan McLean, Tim Glasby and Mitch Garbutt they have some very solid young forwards who can definitely do a job at first grade. Where in the past the Storm might have had these positions filled by veteran role players, their bench this week could look like this K Bromwich, Harris, Junior Moors and McLean. Moors is the oldest out of the crew at 27. Interesting huh? Not only are they all slightly younger, but they all offer something whether it be straight up muscle with Moors and McLean, or the size, agility and skill of Harris or the slightly smaller but more pitbull like Bromwich. It's all there.

The Melbourne Storm could very well finish outside the top 8. It's a very real possibility because there are so many quality footy teams this season who could make a run for the playoffs, but I don't think they will. Even if they don't make the 8, Storm staff, players and fans an look forward to 2015 with a cheeky smile as the pieces to the puzzle are fitting nicely. When Cooper Cronk returns we could see the Storm click in to a higher gear and be pretty potent, but I'm interested in what happens before Cronk's return. It'll be the big 2 and a squad made up of mostly younger guys with a more even spread of talent throughout the squad and if they can compete with the top teams in that time, the sky's the limit.