Storm young gun Jonah Pezet reveals 'smoke and mirrors' as halves headache grows

Jonah Pezet was confirmed to start at halfback at 6.50pm AEST on Friday night.

But the truth is, the young Storm playmaker had known for almost a week that he was going to be steering the side around in their qualifying final clash with Canterbury.

The 22-year-old stepped into the shoes left by Jahrome Hughes and proved to be a more than adequate replacement, producing two try assists in the 26-18 win.

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Pezet also kicked a perfect 40/20 that swung the momentum before half time, with his long kicking game a massive asset for Melbourne en route to another prelim final.

And while he had the No.14 on the back of his jersey, Pezet was more than prepared to stand up when the pressure was on after some "smoke and mirrors" during the week.

"That was probably the best game I've ever played in," he told Nine post-game. 

"When Hughesy went down last Thursday, they were like 'we're pretty sure' and then Bellza [Craig Bellamy] rang me on Sunday night.

"I said 'of course I want to do it' and it was a really cool phone call. I got a good two days in at training, a bit of a smoke and mirrors all week, which was sweet.

"I knew my job and he gives a lot of confidence in me and guys like Harry [Grant] and Mun [Cameron Munster] provide the same."

Pezet looked cool, calm and collected for the majority of the 80 minutes and proved exactly why the club are trying to keep him on their books long-term.

Cameron Munster heaped praise on the talented Gosford product.

"Pez is a very classy player and a very confident kid," he told Nine after the match.

"He doesn't shy away from the big moments and you can tell by the way he goes about his life - he's confident on and off the field.

"We're very lucky to have him since Jahrome is injured."

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While his performance steering the ship was brilliant and earned him plenty of admirers, Pezet is no guarantee to even be in the 17-man team next time the Storm play.

With a week off before the prelims, Melbourne are hoping to have Hughes back on deck from a wrist injury, while Ryan Papenhuyzen will be available after a concussion.

Head coach Craig Bellamy conceded it would be a "horses for courses" situation in the grand final qualifier, but was pleased by what Pezet showed in the role.

"I thought he had his moments," Bellamy said.

"There were a couple of times there where probably not playing with the other guys that often was an issue, but he did a great job tonight.

"The reason we went with him is he's more of an organising half and he's got a really good kicking game. We just thought we needed someone out there tonight whose strength is organising and can do the kicking and he did a really good job tonight.

"It's a little bit of horses for courses. We'll see who we're playing and go from there.

"Without putting any pressure on him, I think there's a rough chance that Hughesy might be back. Hopefully we can make that decision as soon as possible and get us organised and the team can train as a team, especially the week heading into the next game.

"If you ask the player, they will be ready to go, but you've got to ask the medical people and we'll go through that and see how he is on Monday, Tuesday and make the call."