Cronulla moved into fourth place with a 26-16 win over injury-hit North Queensland. The Sharks led 24-6 at halftime, but managed only two second-half points against the resurgent Cowboys, who stayed in eighth place.
"We'll get better in the weeks to come, but today was certainly a step in the right direction and we are getting back to where we need to be," Cronulla coach Shane Flanagan said.
"I thought we were pretty good in the first half. We had aggression in everything we did and I was pretty happy at halftime.
"It was forty minutes of pretty good footy and when you're playing against a team like that, who won't give in, you just have to do your best."
North Queensland had used 32 players this season before Saturday's game, in which they lost Kalyn Ponga and John Asiata to injuries.
Parramatta are fifth after a 30-8 win over the Gold Coast Titans, while sixth-placed Penrith will play Canberra and seventh-placed Manly will play the Bulldogs today.
