WHILE one Smith will be forced to watch from the sidelines, another has promised to "empty the tank" for suspended skipper Cam Smith and the rest of his teammates.

Jeremy Smith, who is heading to St George Illawarra next season, has vowed to use his final match for the Storm to produce a special effort on the game's biggest stage. "I suppose I can just go out and empty the tank," he said. "There's no next week."

Smith, who has been at Melbourne for five years, said his move would be extra tough because his teammates had been "like a big family to me".

But his real family takes precedence, and Smith will move to the Wayne Bennett-coached club primarily so his partner Jodie, the mother of their almost three-year-old daughter Marly, can be closer to her family in Canberra. Of course, the arrival of the now former Brisbane coach also had a bit to do with it. "Having Wayne Bennett going there was a big influence," he said. "Going from 'Bellyache' [Craig Bellamy] to Wayne - you don't lose much there. That was a big part of it."

Along with Smith, Michael Crocker (Hull), Matt Geyer (retiring) and Antonio Kaufusi (North Queensland) will all play their last games for the club, with Smith lamenting the end of an era.

"It's going to be tough but we've got one more to do - send these blokes out as winners," he said.

Smith almost didn't make it himself, having been charged and suspended over his involvement in the same tackle that rubbed Cam Smith out for the decider.

He gambled on pleading guilty - copping a one-match ban and missing the victory over Cronulla last Friday night, which gave him a second successive grand final after playing in last season's victory over Manly off the bench.

"It's the toughest 80 minutes I've ever had to watch," he said of last Friday's game.

It will no doubt pale in comparison to his effort this Sunday. "After last year, everyone's out to beat the champions," he said. "There's no greater challenge than coming out and defending the title."