The Parramatta Eels' memorable surge to the NRL grand final ended in tears when the Melbourne Storm made it two titles in three years with a 23-16 win at Sydney's ANZ Stadium.

The win ensured the Storm's status as a great team of any era, even if it only narrowly held on in a thrilling finish. Melbourne appeared on the path to a comfortable victory, holding a 16-point buffer with 11 minutes remaining in what had been a gruelling contest.

But the Eels, who had captured the imagination of the competition by winning 10 of their last 11 matches of 2009 to reach the decider, weren't done with.

Tries to Joel Reddy and Fuifui Moimoi with 10 and six minutes remaining respectively made for a classic finish to this war of attrition.

But the fairytale wasn't to be. A Greg Inglis drop goal following a controversial penalty in Melbourne's favour by referee Tony Archer with two minutes remaining confirmed Melbourne's status among the great teams.

Entering the contest in front of a sell-out crowd of 82,538, Melbourne had earned itself a reputation of being a very good football team.

Yesterday's was its fourth consecutive grand final a phenomenal achievement in itself given the salary cap restraints of the modern day. But to have won only one decider during that period would have been deemed not good enough.

It would have been unfair if the record books had shown Melbourne as winning only one title in this four-year period.

For more, pick up a copy of today's Canberra Times