Melbourne Storm come to Auckland in a bid to get their season back on track against NZ Warriors, with coach Craig Bellamy in the very unfamiliar territory of his side being in some patchy form.
Facing an injury crisis with a plethora of first-team players out, Melbourne are on a four-game losing streak before the Mount Smart clash.
A wounded, fired-up Storm team are a dangerous prospect for the NZ side, who - let's not forget - suffered arguably their worst-ever defeat last time the two met - the 70-10 Anzac Day massacre.
Bellamy's keen to get things back on track with the playoffs looming and a trip to New Zealand, escaping the hustle and bustle of the NRL drama across the ditch, could prove just the ticket.
"Our guys always enjoy coming here," Bellamy said. "We've got a lot of Kiwis in our side, we always have.
"It's a great stadium, fans are always boisterous and there's always plenty turn up, so it is an enjoyable place to play.
"We went straight from the airport [Wednesday] night, and went to a restaurant to have something to eat and let the boys relax a bit."
In a bid to turn things around, Bellamy admits the Storm have gone back to basics in recent weeks - the basics they've been renowned for since he took over nearly 20 years ago.
"For us, it's not about winning and losing at the moment. It's about finding a bit of form and being more consistent with things that are important to us as a footy team.
"We've gone back to nailing those sorts of things down at training."
So a sharply focused, stripped back, almost simple Melbourne side will attempt to ruin the Penrose party tonight, another dangerous prospect for the underperforming Warriors.
"I think they'll just go back to what they're good at, going up through the middle," said Warriors forward Jazz Tevaga. "It's going to be a long grinding game.
"I think they're just going to complete their sets, kick for the corners and defend. They look to grind teams out, so we're going to look to match that and hopefully we can put in a good performance."
Tevaga's desperate to taste victory over the purple powerhouse of Melbourne for the first time, especially on home soil.
"It's timely we come home, especially after that loss [against the Raiders]. We owe the Storm one - I haven't beaten them yet in my career.
"They've been probably the pinnacle of the league for a decade now. Every time you go up against the Storm, you know you're in for a tough one."
Join us at 8pm Friday for live updates of the Warriors v Storm NRL clash
