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The support of a partner that's been there and done that has been integral in Ryan Papenhuyzen rediscovering his sparkle ahead of the NRL finals.

Ryan Papenhuyzen has heaped praise on partner and Test netball star Kelsey Browne for his timely return to form after the Melbourne fullback battled internal demons and external critics in his concussion comeback.

The Storm No.1 restored order on Friday night with three tries in a win over Cronulla that sealed a fourth minor premiership in six years for the NRL club.

It came after a below-par performance in a loss to Parramatta that left Papenhuyzen in the firing line as he attempted to find form after a nearly 10 weeks on the sideline.

"I was a bit down, probably copped a bit for that but kept a few receipts and tried to come out ... and put on a good performance," he said after the win over the Sharks.

"It's not nice to hear those things, but it's what motivates me too.

"It's going to happen, people like to talk rubbish about performances and I probably deserved it last week but at the end of the day it just motivates me to want to come out and put in a good performance."

The spark was obviously back in a performance that thrilled coach Craig Bellamy, who was pleased to see him bounce back from a number of heavy hits, and put to bed any thoughts of form utility Nicho Hynes replacing him at fullback for the finals.

The 22-year-old Papenhuyzen said Browne, who won two Super Netball titles with Sunshine Coast but has been beset by injury since joining Collingwood two years ago, had been crucial in the turnaround.

"She's been through a lot herself," he said.

"She's been coming out and making sure that I know I can still put in good performances and just back myself.

"She's a few years older than me, been through it all and knows what's coming on the back of a bad performance.

"It's pretty important that she's in my life at the moment helping me out."

The fullback said reducing his role to three "basics" - be involved, be involved with intent and organise defence - had helped unmuddle his mind.

"This week I probably took it to another level of basics," he said.

"Real simple, don't even involve the footy, it's just things off the ball that I can put my mind to and everything else comes naturally."

Melbourne have lost just three games this season but struggled for fluency in recent weeks, Bellamy admitting some players seemed to be "waiting" for finals to arrive.

Papenhuyzen disagreed but did admit there was work to do.

"It's good to see it's not just one player. 13 players doing the thing we need to do - we're a really good footy side," he said.

"You want to build in (to finals) and that's why it's been frustrating.

"We've had one good half in the last few games but not put 80 minutes together."