Melbourne never feels more simultaneously energised and self-absorbed in the week before a big sports event.

But if the Richmond versus Collingwood preliminary final has consumed an AFL-obsessed city, there is another significant attraction on Friday night that does not involve yellow and black clashing with black and white.

You might even suggest that on any other weekend the Melbourne Storm's NRL preliminary final with Cronulla would be front and square in the city's consciousness.

But despite the enormous strides the Storm, as a pioneering franchise, has taken during 20 stupendously successful seasons that would overstate the degree to which rugby league has infiltrated Melbourne's consciousness.

AFL dominates Melbourne because it inhabits every aspect of society. As the old truism goes, the criminal and the judge who convicts him will chat amiably about the machinations of Collingwood team selections.

On the other hand, Roy Morgan's claim that the Storm has 1.05 million "supporters" is misleading because it does not justify notional "support" with real consumption such as game attendance, merchandise purchases and TV viewing.

The Storm's paid-up membership of more than 20,000, however, is just one indication that a club that could once only make a ripple on Melbourne's sporting pond is now capable of creating the occasional wave.

A pity then that the ecumenical sports fans that might have turned an eye to the Storm on Friday night will be transfixed by events on the other side of the footbridge that separates Melbourne's rectangular stadium from the MCG.

Billy Slater will be making his farewell appearance for the Storm on Melbourne soil. ( AAP: Dave Hunt, File )

It is a shame because there is a strong argument that the substance of the Storm versus Sharks encounter is more than a match for the hype of the Richmond-Collingwood showdown.

Tears will flow before and perhaps after what will be superstar full-back Billy Slater's final match in what has become, and will remain upon retirement, his home town.

For most of his career Slater was one third of Australian sport's greatest package deal – the 'Big Three'. But you could argue Slater did more to spread the word of rugby league among the southern heathens than his fabled stablemates Cameron Smith and Cooper Cronk.

Smith is the ultimate NRL warrior and Cronk a superb technician. But Slater's free-form style, relatively small physique and radiant smile was fully relatable to an Australian rules audience that saw their own chaotic game in the way he played.

Fitting, then, that Slater has been accorded the most Melburnian of tributes — a giant mural of his image splashed on a wall not far from his Richmond home.

If Slater's final appearance on Melbourne soil elevates an already important occasion, the bitter relationship between the teams is the most intriguing aspect of the game itself.

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Some teams such as Richmond and Collingwood are rivals due to their shared histories, yet the animosity lies mostly in the imaginations of their fans rather than the hearts of the combatants.

Melbourne and Cronulla, on the other hand, are rivals in a very real "we don't like you, you don't like us, let's sort this out on the field and maybe even in the car park after the game" sort of way.

The mini-Origin nature of the 2016 line-ups — Smith/Cronk/Slater versus Paul Gallen/Andrew Fifita — built the fire and the tense grand final won by the Sharks that season added the fuel.

Subsequently some spiteful clashes and the inflammatory comments of Sharks coach Shane Flanagan have turned Melbourne versus Cronulla games into a raging bushfire.

Last season Flanagan ranted about the Storm's alleged wrestling tactics after an 18-13 defeat, further noting "referee (Cameron) Smith did a good job".

The Cronulla coach apologised for that slur. Yet Flanagan doubled down again this week, telling Fairfax Media that the Sharks "won't put up with any of their crap" — an allusion to the Storm's tough tackling and Smith's alleged influence on the officials.

Storm, Sharks building Origin-like rivalry

For their part, the Storm claim to take the Sharks sleights as a form of flattery. Slater wrote of Flanagan's words in his autobiography: "Most accusations stem from the frustration teams feel about just how good Cam Smith is."

Yet Storm centre Will Chambers, often front and centre in these battles, said this week he and his teammates would "not be taking their [Cronulla's] shit" – an indication the teams have gotten under each other's skins.

Cronulla's 2016 grand final win over Melbourne added further tension to the rivalry between the two clubs. ( AAP: David Moir )

Regardless where the blame lies for the poisonous relationship, the antipathy is now palpable when the teams go head-to-head.

Two years ago I took my son's 10-year-old friend to his first NRL game, coincidentally between Melbourne and Cronulla.

After watching Fifita rampage through the ruck, only to be met by the Storm's energetic resistance, his jaw dropped and he asked: "Are they allowed to tackle like that?"

The answer was yes, and no. The brutality of the collisions were more resonant of an Origin decider than a regular club fixture, with the line between legitimate force and grievous bodily harm somewhat blurred.

Friday night's match is unlikely to be any less physical with a grand final place at stake.

The Sharks confirmed captain Gallen, whose left arm hung limply by his side after a dramatic one point semi-final victory over Penrith, won't play against the Storm, meaning the injury must be severe given only amputation would usually force the 37-year-old warhorse from the field.

This game is too big to miss, even if there is something happening across the footbridge.

Offsiders is broadcast 10:00am Sundays on ABC TV