Flannery has backed his club's decision to run out nine Melbourne Storm players in his side's opening match against Norths on Saturday, a call that has some questioning whether the Falcons have gone too heavy on outside talent.

The Falcons have been the laughing stock of the league for the past three seasons, managing only seven wins and collecting the wooden spoon in 2013 and last year - during the period when they had no NRL feeder agreement in place.

Anyone who went to a Falcons game last year would confirm the crowds were dismal, not because the players - almost entirely home-grown talent - were not trying, but because they were getting their butts handed to them by sides containing fringe NRL squad members.

Fast forward 12 months and the Coast side finds itself dripping with NRL talent.

This weekend's team includes Australian and New South Wales representative Tom Learoyd-Lahrs, boom youngster Nelson Asofa-Solomona and NRL enforcers Kenny Bromwich and Ben Hampton.

Having such quality players at their disposal is a luxury the Falcons have not enjoyed since their affiliation with Manly.

That feeder arrangement delivered the Coast side the 2009 Intrust Super Cup premiership.

Flannery said anyone knocking the decision to run out so many Storm players needed to consider the club's predicament of putting together a competitive team.

"You only have to look at last year when we were being hammered, and that was because we could not compete against the resources of other clubs," he said.

http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/storm-picks-defended-pike-calls-for-local-falcons-/2564407/

Courtesy of Sunshine Coast Daily