They say you have to lose a Grand Final to win one, and that saying certainly came true last night for the Manly Sea Eagles - who put on an unbelievable display against the Melbourne Storm.

No one in their right mind would have believed the Sea Eagles could have put 40 points on the Storm, let-a-lone keep the Storm scoreless - but the Sea Eagles were unstoppable on their way to their first Grand Final victory since 1996.

The Storm looked shell shocked as the Sea Eagles dominated the game right from the kickoff. And, while it took around 25 minutes for Manly to score their first try, from that moment on they just kept the four pointers coming. Michael Robertson scored three of the eight trys, and set up the Beaver with his 180th try in the NRL - not a bad way to end a sixteen year career with the Sea Eagles.

Brent Kite was outstanding as he made hit-up after hit-up, keeping the Sea Eagles on the front foot and, most importantly, giving the backs great field position from which to attack. Kite was rewarded for his excellent performance with the Clive Churchill Medal, which will help him erase any bad memories of missing out on Origin this year.

The Sea Eagles can now put last years disappointing Grand Final behind them, while the Storm are left to ponder what on earth happened.

For a team that boasts the likes of Billy Slater, Greg Inglis, Israel Falou and Cooper Cronk, last nights efforts will be one they'll never want to remember. It was one of their worst displays in a long time, and unfortunately for them they saved it for the biggest game of the year.

They've looked tired since their game against the Warriors in Round 11 of the playoffs, while the Sea Eagles looked refreshed and ready to do battle.

While we wouldn't count the Storm out in 2009, it does seem as though their era of dominance may be starting to crack - and they're losing some key players for next year's competition, too.

For the Sea Eagles, last night was all about redemption - and, most importantly, sending the long serving Steve Menzies out on a high. They achieved both, and brilliantly.

Menzies now heads to Bradford to end his illustrious career that spanned sixteen years, 349 NRL games (a record he now shares with Bulldogs great Terry Lamb), fifteen State of Origin campaigns with New South Wales, and twenty Tests for the Kangaroos. He is the epitome of the word 'legend', and it's been an absolute pleasure to have watched him play over the past sixteen years.

We wish him all the best for the rest of his career.

The rugby league world now turns it's attention to the World Cup, which kicks off in a couple of weeks - no doubt there'll be a few Sea Eagles in the Australian squad...

It would only be fitting to look at the Top 5 NRL Grand Finals over the past decade, seeing as today the Sea Eagles and the Storm will do battle for the Premiership.

There have been some truly great clashes over the past ten years - here are our picks:

5. Brisbane Broncos vs Melbourne Storm - 2006
It was the third placed Broncos vs the minor premiers, and everyone was expecting the Storm to take this one out. But the Broncos are the masters of Grand Finals, and this one was especially special - they were saying goodbye to Shane Webke, who was retiring after the Grand Final. And they couldn't have sent him out in better fashion, with a 15-8 victory - making it six wins from six Grand Final appearances for the Broncos (not bad, really...).

The Storm looked like they had scored late in the second half through Matt King, but the video ref called a knock-on - effectively giving the Broncos the title.
The video ref's call created a bit of controversy, but in the end the Broncos were too good for the Storm, who would have to wait another year for a second NRL title.

4. Penrith Panthers vs Sydney Roosters - 2003
The Panthers had a standout year, and topped it off with an impressive 18-6 win over the Roosters, who were trying to go back-to-back after beating the Warriors the year before.

The game will best be remembered for Scott Sattler's amazing tackle on Todd Byrne - a tackle he should never have had the chance to make. The veteran forward chased down the flying Byrne, coming from the other side of the field to catch "Skinny" - it's the kind of moment that can only happen in a Grand Final.

The tackle swung the momentum back towards the Panthers, who never looked back. Luke Priddis was named the Clive Churchill medalist, after scoring one try, setting up another, and making an incredible 47 tackles.

This one was also special for us New Zealanders, because of the strong Kiwi connection with the Panthers. And, of course - any time the Roosters are beaten has got to be good.

3. Newcastle Knights vs Parramatta Eels - 2001
The Eels were odds-on favourites to win the Final after going through the season with only one loss, but at halftime the Knights were up 24-0 and were playing some fantastic footy. The lead shocked everyone - none more so than the Eels, who came out in the second half with a lot of work to do to catch up.

They managed to fight back scoring 24 points, but it was too little too late as the Knights went on to win 30-24, and in doing so claimed their second Premiership since their win in 1997.

2. Melboure Storm vs St George/Illawara Dragons - 1999
The Storm produced one of the best comebacks to win the 1999 Premiership - their first since joining the NRL the previous year.

Down 14-nil at halftime, the Storm fought back to 20-18 in very dramatic circumstances. With only three minutes to go the Storm were trailing 18-14, when Brett Kimmorley put up a bomb for winger Craig Smith. As Smith went to catch the ball, Jaime Ainscough took him out with a head high tackle, forcing Smith to knock the ball on. The video ref was left with the decision of whether or not a penalty try should be awarded, which he gave to the Storm - sealing their first Grand Final win.

The win was Storm prop Glenn Lazarus' fifth Grand Final win, and it coincided with his last game in the NRL.

The game will best be remembered for that infamous moment with only three minutes on the clock. Ainscough wouldn't have been very popular in St George after that night...

1. Wests Tigers vs North Queensland Cowboys - 2005
Both these two teams were making their first appearance at a Grand Final, and with the Tigers winning twelve of their last fourteen games (including two wins over the Cowboys), they were on their way to their first NRL Premiership.

They didn't fail to impress, racking up 30 points to sink the Cowboys hopes.

Benji Marshall set up what is possibly the greatest try in a Grand Final, with a flick-back pass to set up Pat Richards, who ran in for one of the Tiger's five trys.

The Tigers were on fire, while the Cowboys looked to have a case of the Grand Final jitters - and in the end, the Tigers thoroughly deserved their first Premiership (as a combined club - Western Suburbs and Balmain).

If tonight's game is anything like these five, then we're in for something special.

This Sunday, the Manly Sea Eagles and the Melbourne Storm will once again go head to head for the NRL Premiership.

The two sides met in last year's Grand Final, where the Storm proved to strong for the Sea Eagles - who looked like they had the Grand Final jitters.

But that was a long time ago, and the Sea Eagles definitely look like a much better team this time round. And they'll need to be if they want to win their first Premiership since 1996.

The Storm are not in the best form, and losing Cameron Smith will take it's toll on the team come Sunday - but at this point, all that matters to the Storm is that they have a shot, and they do seem to save their best efforts for the Sea Eagles.

They have a whole lot of talent in their side, so don't write them off just yet. Cooper Cronk will need to have a big game if the Storm want to win their third NRL Premiership, and he will need to take a lot of the responsibility - especially since being given the captaincy.

For the Storm to beat the Sea Eagles they'll need to put pressure on Matt Orford, who has been criticised in the past for not handling the big occasions. He, too, will need to be at his best come Sunday night.

The Sea Eagles, though, do have the advantage of having Jamie Lyon at number 6 - he can take a lot of the pressure off Orford by doing a lot of the general kicking, and pitching in with on-field leadership.

Believe us when we say this game will be one you won't want to miss. Manly have seemed more determined than ever since last year's loss, and (despite loosing to the Storm earlier in the year) if they play like they did against the Warriors, then they'll walk away with the win.

And wouldn't that be a fitting way to send Steve Menzies out - with one last Premiership victory?

We certainly think so.

The Manly Sea Eagles are off to the NRL Grand Final, after they downed the Warriors 32-6 in Sydney last night.

They put on a fantastic performance to shut out the Warriors, and now head to the final against the Melbourne Storm (a rematch from last year's final).

The Warriors didn't play badly last night, but the Sea Eagles completely controlled the game - and in doing so, didn't allow the Warriors to play the type of game that's worked for them recently.

It's simple - Manly were the better team on the night, and unfortunately for Warriors fans that's just the way the game goes sometimes.

The Sea Eagles kept the game flowing at a high speed, slowly wearing down the Warriors - who spent a lot of the game defending. And, in the end, the Sea Eagles proved too strong.

Next Sunday's Grand Final is going to be another great match-up, as both the Sea Eagles and the Storm have shown that they are by far the two best teams in the competition this year.

It's hard to pick a favourite to win, but after last night's performance we have to say that Manly head into the game as the team to beat. They controlled the game against the Warriors perfectly, whereas the Storm fed off the mistakes of the Sharks. While we can't count out the Storm, we definitely think Manly are in red hot form right now - and will probably take it out.

Manly have been playing with an intense passion since losing last years final, and it's driving them towards victory this year. They say you have to lose a final to win a final, and if that's the case the Storm had better watch out - because the Sea Eagles are flying high right now.

There will be some exciting match-ups next week - both teams have some of the best in the business. Brett Stewart vs Billy Slater, Jaime Lyon vs Greg Inglis, Matt Orford vs Cooper Cronk - we could go on and on.

This one has 'epic' written all over it, and anyone who misses next Sunday's final will regret it come Monday morning.