Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy knew he was getting speed with the mid-season signing of Wests Tigers winger Marika Koroibete but has been surprised by the Fijian flyer's strength.
Playing his second game for the Storm, Koroibete was one of the standouts in their six-try 28-14 win over Canberra that kept their NRL finals hopes firmly on track.
The 21-year-old scored in the first half and then midway through the second managed to stay in field despite the best efforts of three defenders and offload a ball for a Mahe Fonua try.
"We know how quick he is but he has surprised me with his physicality," Bellamy said.
"I don't remember too much of that watching him play for the Tigers."
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Widely regarded as one of the quickest men in the game, Koroibete clocked 10.75 seconds for 100 metres as a teenager.
He burst on to the NRL scene in 2012, scoring four tries in only his second match but before his switch to Melbourne couldn't break back into the Tigers' top side.
Another threat in the Storm backline came on the other wing, with fellow Fijian Sisa Waqa also scoring in the second half.
"The thing I really like about the two Fijians are that when they've got something to do, they do it flat out," Bellamy said.
"When they had the ball in their hands, they looked fairly likely. We think that's going to be a real plus for us in the next couple of weeks."
The Storm will need all the strikepower they can muster in a challenging road to the finals.
They only have two games at home in their remaining seven and face fellow contenders Penrith, Brisbane, the Tigers and Sydney Roosters.
"We have the next three games away from home and between the second and third we've only got five days," Bellamy said.
"It's a tough run but that's our path so we need to make the best of it that we can."
