Having Billy Slater back on board and an NRL grand final under their belts can only make Melbourne Storm a better side in 2017, says Cper Cronk.The superstar halfback said while their two-point loss to Cronulla in the NRL title decider stung, there were some positives to be taken from the season.When youre the losing side in a grand final you try and hang your hat on something and you can lk at the positives and say weve made some big steps in the direction this club wants to go to in terms of our next tier of players playing really well, Cronk said.Now if we ever go to the grand final again they will be better off for the occasion.Test fullback Slater missed the season after re-injuring his troublesome shoulder in round one, but said post-grand final that he still had the hunger to play on next season.Cronk said the return of Slater would be a bonus for the club, with his young gun fullback replacement Cameron Munster set to shift to five-eighth.Billy Slater is still the best fullback in the game and I know as a person and an athlete he will do everything possible ... and Im backing him to come back and play his best ftball, said Cronk at a fan presentation on the Yarra River.After claiming the minor premiership and coming so close to the title, missing an opportunity for a last-ditch try to steal the win, Cronk said they would use the pain of the loss to drive their bid for a premiership in 2017.It will probably sit with me for 12 months until we get another opportunity, Cronk said.You can use it as motivation in the pre-season to get out and have a red-hot crack and see where you end up next October.Coach Craig Bellamy said the club would have a post-season review next week but didnt expect t much to change for next season given they won the minor premiership.To be the minor premiers it means youre the best team for six months, to be the premiers you have to be the best team for the last month and we werent quite that, Bellamy said.But that gives you plenty of reasons to be proud of them. 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Young formally announced his retirement Friday after returning to Rangers Ballpark, his baseball home for all but the last of his 13 major league seasons. CLAIREFONTAINE, France -- France defender Patrice Evra has a blunt message for his teammates ahead of the European Championship quarterfinal against Iceland: Wake up.France has failed to score in the first half at Euro 2016 and has been scraping through with gutsy second-half performances.But one day, that formula may not work.We react instead of taking the initiative, the 35-year-old left back said on Thursday. I get the impression that we only play well when we have our backs to the wall. I hope were going to start (the game) well and not wait until the second half before we step on the accelerator.He fears another stifled performance might prove costly.We should be telling ourselves that one day it wont come off for us, and that it might be against Iceland, said Evra ahead of Sundays game at Stade de France. We need things to be boiling up inside us -- we need to wake up before the game.France needed an 89th-minute winner from Dimitri Payet to beat Romania 2-1, then last-gasp goals from Antoine Griezmann and Payet to see off Albania 2-0. Against Ireland in the round of 16, France overturned a 1-0 halftime deficit to win 2-1.I cant repeat exactly what was said (at halftime). But weve had enough of just reacting, said Evra. What you cant take away from us is that we keep going until the last second. But we cant rely on that.Evra bristled at his news conference when it was suggested that France has been somewhat fortunate -- considering it had a relatively weak group, followed by unheralded Ireland and Iceland in the knockout sstages.dddddddddddd.If we beat Iceland, then well play Germany or Italy (in the semifinals), he said. You call that luck? I dont.Evra stands to win his 78th international cap against Iceland. But he was not part of the squad that reached the 2006 World Cup final.Ive never won a quarterfinal with France, whereas at club level Ive lost count, said Evra, who has won a multitude of trophies with Manchester United and Juventus. I am putting myself under pressure. If I dont go through to the next round it will feel like Im standing still.Evra thinks that the vitriol directed at Englands players after the 2-1 defeat on Monday was very unfair -- on Iceland.People say England underestimated them but that takes credit away from Iceland. They beat Holland home and away in qualifying, Evra said. They have very gd players. I played against (midfielder) Gylfi Sigurdsson when he was at Tottenham. People talk about their long throws, but they know how to get it down and play ftball.Still, Evra will be wary of midfielder Aron Gunnarsson -- for his dangerous long throws.During his United career, Evra dealt with a similar threat from Stokes Rory Delap.The famous javelin thrower. We worked on that in training at Manchester United. We had to, Evra said. Its a weapon. I think (Iceland) scored twice from throw-ins, so weve been warned. Well have to really concentrate so that we dont fall into the trap like other teams. ' ' '