Melbourne Storm NRL coach Craig Bellamy says his team is in better shape than it was at the same time last year but they need to bank more points before the Origin series.
They are counting on two points coming from their AAMI Park match against South Sydney tonight.
Thedefending champions, who have never won in Melbourne in 11 attempts, are without injured playmaker Adam Reynolds and are backing up from a hard-fought Monday night win over St George Illawarra.
"Coming into Origin it's a really important game for us because it's a difficult period to work your way through so it would be nice to pick two points up before Origin," Bellamy said.
The coach believed the Storm's impressive winning record at home counted for little, as Souths were coming to Melbourne for the first time as defending champions.
That gave him confidence heading into the Origin period, when the Storm will supply four star players - Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, Cooper Cronk and Will Chambers - to the Queensland team.
"Last year we were a fair way down the pack going into Origin," Bellamy said. "We are certainly playing better; defence is probably the main area and I feel a bit more confidence in it going into this period.
"The effort over most of the nine rounds has been really good and we will need that tomorrow night."
Fullback Slater made a blistering return from a shoulder injury in the Storm's last outing, scoring two tries in their win over Parramatta.
While they will soon be Maroons teammates, the battle between Slater and Souths fullback Greg Inglis, who started his career in Melbourne, will be key to the match.
"I'm sure Billy will be keen to play well after missing a month and will be keen to get another game under his belt before Origin," Bellamy said.
The Storm were dealt a blow on the eve of the Rabbitohs clash when young prop Jordan McLean was ruled out for at least a month with a hamstring injury.
