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It wasnt winning the minor premiership or even the preliminary final that made Cameron Smith believe the Melbourne Storm could win the NRL crown. Wholesale NFL Store .It was their pre-season.The captain said he realised before a ball had even been kicked in the competition that this years Storm side was special and could be premiership contenders.Ahead of the title decider against Cronulla in Sydney on Sunday, Smith said he knew they were a better team than that which bowed out in the preliminary final last season.It was just a different feeling in the group this year, it was like we all knew where we were headed and were on the same page and driving each other to get to this point this year, Smith said on Monday.Following that loss to eventual champions North Queensland, Smith said that Storm coach Craig Bellamy and the senior players challenged the young players during the post-season review to work harder on their fitness, strength and mental toughness to be more consistent.They would play well one week and then the next week not play at the standard we needed them to play, Smith explained.We challenged them to pick up their consistency. They worked extremely hard through the pre-season.Smith said he could see the signs during the pre-season that the message had sunk in, and the result is the best ever years for players like Jordan McLean, Kenny Bromwich and Ben Hampton.In the back end of the pre-season I saw a lot of positive signs in the group with the way they were training, particularly the younger group in our squad I thought they had tremendous pre-seasons, Smith said.Jordans had a break-out season; hes been in first grade for a couple of years but hasnt really given us what weve all been waiting for but this year he has.So thats a huge reason as to why were here this weekend, because those young guys and the way they have played the whole year.Lining up for his fifth grand final (missing 2008 through suspension), Smith said he felt grateful to have the opportunity to play in another.He said when the Storm won in 2012 the team was driven by having their 2008 and 2009 premierships stripped for salary cap cheating.This year it was purely about the opportunity.We talk about not looking ahead and one week at a time but when were running laps in the pre-season, in the meeting room watching hours of vision, our goal is to win the premiership, he said. Supply Cheap NFL Jerseys . Artturi Lehkonen, Joni Nikko and Ville Leskinen had the other goals for Finland (1-0) while Juuse Saros stopped 28 shots. Tim Robin Johnsgard had the lone goal for Norway (0-2). NFL China Factory .J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons. http://www.cheapnfljerseysbest.com/ .com) - The red-hot Los Angeles Kings will try to extend their winning streak to a season-high seven games when they visit the Edmonton Oilers for Sundays clash at Rexall Place. HOUSTON -- Tampa Bays Matt Moore shut down Houston on Monday night for his 11th win. The Rays are impressed with his performance thus far, but believe the 24-year-old can do much more. Moore allowed two hits in seven scoreless innings, and Ryan Roberts homered twice to give the Rays a 12-0 win over the Astros. "Hes going to continue to get better," manager Joe Maddon said. "Thats his 11th win right there and were still talking about the little foibles that he may have, yes. But to his credit he knows that and he knows that theres room for improvement, and because he does hes going to continue to get better." Moore (11-3) won his third straight decision and Cesar Ramos pitched two perfect innings to complete the two-hitter and help the Rays win their third in a row. He credited a lot of his success on Monday to his curveball. "Yeah it was pretty good," he said. "It was definitely one of those things I could use later in the count pretty consistently without fear." Roberts made it 3-0 with a two-run homer in the third inning off Dallas Keuchel (4-5) and tacked on another run with a solo shot in the eighth inning. It was his second two home run game of the season and the third of his career. "We know everybody can hit on this team, and to see the guys come out and do it tonight, it was awesome to be a part of," Roberts said. Sean Rodriguez had a career-high four hits -- two doubles -- with three RBIs and three other Rays added three hits apiece on a night they tied a season high in scoring and finished with 17 hits. Chris Carter and Jake Elmore got Houstons only hits with singles as the last-place Astros dropped their fourth game in a row. "It was just a tough, frustrating game watching them score the runs and just being on defence all day and watching it happen," Carter said. "Moore was tough today ... A lot of quick innings out of him and then we were on defence for a long time. It makes it tough." Moore, who moved into a tie for second in wins among AL pitchers, struck out nine and walked three to tie his win total from last season when he finished 11-11. Keuchel yielded eight hits and five runs with five walks in 4 2-3 innings. Paul Clemens couldnt slow the Rays down either, allowing five hits and four runs over the next two innings. Wil Myers walked to start the third before a double by Ben Zobrist. The Rays took a 1-0 lead on a sacrifice fly by James Loney with one out and Roberts extended the lead to 3-0. Yunel Escobar drew a one-out walk in the fifth and Ryan Roberts singled with two outs. Jose Lobatons groundball single scored Escobar to make it 4-0. Sam Fulds RBI ssingle left Tampa Bay up 5-0 and chased Keuchel. NFL Jerseys China. Houston didnt get a hit until Elmore singled with two outs in the third. But Moore struck out Jose Altuve to end that inning. He got into a bit of trouble in the fourth when Jason Castro walked with no outs before advancing to third on a single by Carter. He escaped the jam by striking out J.D. Martinez before Matt Dominguez grounded into a double play. Moore sat down the next nine batters he faced before being replaced by Ramos for the eighth inning. "I think we just kind of got on rhythm and got on a good pace," Moore said. "There were a lot of strike ones which we followed up with strike two. We werent trying to mess around too much tonight." Loney extended his hitting streak to 12 games with a one-out single in the seventh. The Rays then hit five consecutive singles, with the last four driving in a run each, to push the lead to 9-0. The Astros replaced Clemens with Hector Ambriz after the fourth hit in that stretch, but the trouble didnt end. Ambriz allowed the fifth single before walking Zobrist to load the bases. Houston finally got out of the inning when Escobar, the 10th batter of the inning, grounded out. NOTES: Tampa Bay 3B Evan Longoria was out of the lineup for the third straight game with plantar fasciitis in his right foot, but the Rays dont plan on placing him on the disabled list. He took ground balls before the game Monday. Maddon said he felt better on Monday and they hope he can play sometime in the four-game series in Houston. "Its still a day by day situation," he said. "We think that we might be able to get him back somehow, some way. Well just wait and see. But overall, not so bad."... AL Cy Young winner David Price is scheduled return from his first-ever stint on disabled list and start for the Rays on Tuesday. He has missed 44 games with a left triceps strain. Maddon said hell be more concerned with how Price feels on Tuesday than in the results. "If we could get six innings out of him that would be outstanding," Maddon said. "Primarily lets just wish him good health and the fact that were beyond the problem. Because if he stays well and is able to pitch on a regular basis, hes going to put up good numbers."... The Astros expect 1B/DH Carlos Pena to be back with the team on Tuesday after he missed two games to be with his family in the Dominican Republic following the drowning death of his nephew. ... SS Carlos Correa, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 draft by Houston, was picked for the last spot on the World Team roster for the 2013 All-Star Futures game by winning a fan vote. He is hitting .323 for Class A Quad Cities. ' ' '