His side may be sitting pretty atop the Telstra Premiership ladder, but Dragons halfback Ben Hunt said a 40-minute onslaught from the Melbourne Storm last round left his team under no illusion as to what they are up against on Sunday.
Little more than an hour after the Dragons beat the Sydney Roosters in their Anzac Day showdown in Sydney, the Storm scored 38 points in the opening 40 minutes of their meeting with the New Zealand Warriors at AAMI Park.
Hunt told this week's edition of Big League magazine that the Storm were back to their dominating best.
"Their first half against the Warriors was exceptional and we know they'll bring that same intensity to Kogarah on Sunday," he said.
"The biggest thing about them is that they're always consistent. They turn up every week and put in their best performance, no matter who's missing from their side."
Hunt said facing off against Storm No.6 Cameron Munster would keep him busy at Jubilee Oval in the Sunday showdown.
"While they've got strike weapons across the park, my biggest job will be trying to handle Cameron Munster," Hunt said.
"He's an exceptional player across the board, and while he showed glimpses of it last year, he's gone to another level in 2018. His best attribute has always been his running game. He's such a strong runner and he can make you look silly with his show-and-go."
Hunt is hoping to soon add a Queensland Maroons jersey to the Red V one he has slipped seamlessly into this year.
He rugged No.7 said his chances of snaring a Holden State of Origin jersey were reliant upon him playing well every week, not just when facing up to the likes of Maroons greats Billy Slater and Cameron Smith.
"Given we're playing the likes of Cameron Smith and Billy Slater, a lot of people assume this weekend's game is a State of Origin audition for me," he said.
"It'd be great to do well on Sunday, but I'm just trying to impress every game I play. You can't just play well for one or two games and expect to be picked; you've got to be consistent."
Dufty prepares to face the best
