Bellamy's brutal Smith admission after defeat

Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy admits his side needs to learn how to "steady the ship", with club legend Cameron Smith no longer in the squad.

The Storm were unable to build on last week's win over the Rabbitohs in Round Two, going down to the Eels 16-12 in wet and slippery conditions at Bankwest Stadium.

Bellamy's men were on the back foot for most of the night, forced to level the scores on two occasions while unable to hit the front of the scoreboard all match before Eels winger Maika Sivo sealed it with a stunning aerial try in the 76th minute.

The loss will no doubt be even more frustrating for Melbourne given they were on the better end of the errors and ruck infringements tally, with the Eels producing more negative plays as the Storm owned the possession count at 55 per cent.

Asked what went wrong, Bellamy said his side still needs to learn how to keep their composure as they continue to adjust to life without Smith, who announced his retirement from the game earlier this month.

"We know we've got some work to do. Without Cameron there we've still got to learn our way a little bit," Bellamy told reporters after the match.

"We lost our way a little bit last week but we managed to steady the ship, whereas tonight I don't think we steadied it that well.

"As I said to the players, I couldn't have asked for any more effort from them, but I could ask for a few more smarter efforts perhaps."

Bellamy added that he needs to figure out how he can get the best out of the playing group, with Smith no longer there to "cover" and pick players up when matches are hanging in the balance.

"We're still learning, that's part of it. We have to take that responsibility," he added.

"We're sitting in the dressing rooms at half-time thinking, 'we need to keep completing with the ball and staying patient'. But it's like, 'the bloke next to me, he's got to do that.'

"I don't know whether they're seeing the necessity of them doing it, whereas Smith would be picking them up out there.

"That's still a part we need to get right – to cover for what he's brought with us over the last few years in a game like that."

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