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Storm captain Jesse Bromwich has urged teammate Nelson Asofa-Solomona to maintain his aggressive style of play during the finals series, believing he is yet to reach his full potential in the NRL.

Asofa-Solomona was cleared by the match review committee last week for a late shot on Eels five-eighth Mitchell Moses, which saw the Storm prop brought from the field for a breather moments later.

Standing there ready to embrace Asofa-Solomona on the sideline was Bromwich before the Storm enforcer blew a kiss to irate Eels fans in the stands who weren’t happy with the Moses tackle.

“He embraces it all and when he’s in the moment it can be quite funny sometimes, we love playing with him,” Bromwich told NRL.com.

“I don’t think it (any criticism) flusters him much at all. Nelson is a big, scary guy on the field but off the field he’s kind of like a kid.

“He doesn’t know how big he is, he likes to muck around a lot and is a real family man.

“I’ve had a lot to do with him in his career. He’s a guy that when he’s on can be one of the most damaging guys in the game, easily."

Nelson Asofa-Solomona and Jesse Bromwich after winning the competition in 2020.
Nelson Asofa-Solomona and Jesse Bromwich after winning the competition in 2020. ©Gregg Porteous/NRL Photos

Bromwich is in no mood to treat Saturday’s match as his last in Storm colours but it will be at AAMI Park after the club finished outside the top four for the first time in eight years.

The Storm veteran, who either way will fall short of playing 300 NRL games for the club, was farewelled at the final home game last month.

“It was nice to be able to do that and put it behind us,” he said.

“All I’m worried about is finals footy and doing my job and trying to take this team right to the end.

“We haven’t found ourselves in this situation much but it’s important to not let it get to us.

“I know if we play our best footy we can trouble any team in the competition.”

The Raiders forward pack provides plenty of punch in both the middle and on the edges with the likes of Joseph Tapine, Hudson Young and Josh Papalii leading the way.

Papalii steamrolled five Wests Tigers defenders to the line last week as the Storm prop prepares to take on his Raiders counterpart for the 21st time in their NRL careers.

Storm v Raiders: Finals Week 1

“I’ve played a lot of games against Paps but that’s my job, to stop him from playing good,” Bromwich said.

“He scores a lot of tries for a big guy and their forward pack especially the way Joseph Tapine has been playing lately, it’s a real strength in their side.

“I’m happy with the effort we’re putting into games but we can do things a bit smarter. If we improve we can get the results.”

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