SYDNEY - Defending champions Brisbane yesterday moved a point clear at the top of the National Rugby League standings after downing a spirited Melbourne Storm 18-16.
Melbourne put the mid-week departure of coach Chris Anderson behind them to match the Broncos in scoring three tries, with New Zealand Maori backrower HenryPerenara getting the Storm's first.
Trailing 12-18 late in the game at Brisbane's ANZ Stadium, the visitors finished strongly, with winger Marcus Bai dotting down in the corner, but the sideline conversion was missed.
Newcastle moved up to second after securing a 22-20 victory over Canberra in bizarre circumstances.
The match looked headed for a certain draw with just seconds to go and the Raiders having a restart on their own 20m line.
But instead of a tap, halfback Brett Finch opted to try to find touch upfield to give his side a scrum in an attacking position, only to watch in horror as his kick went out on the full.
With the hooter having sounded, Knights skipper Andrew Johns stepped up to kick the ensuing penalty to give the Knights their first win at Bruce Stadium in Canberra.
At Penrith, the Panthers were over-run by St George Illawarra 14-42 to remain bottom of the standings.
The key moment came early in the second half when Penrith hooker Lee Hopkins was sinbinned for an offside infringement. The Panthers scored two tries in his absence to blow out the scoreline.
On Saturday night, after the Bulldogs and the New Zealand Warriors drew 24-24 in Wellington, Parramatta and North Queensland also had to settle for a share of the points in Townsville.
The Cowboys made light of talk of financial problems at the club to fight their way back from 4-12 down at halftime to draw the match 14-14.
In a frantic final few minutes, Parramatta halfback Jason Taylor and opposite Nathan Fien each had two field goal attempts to win the match, but all went wide.
At Toyota Park, visiting coach Graham Murray completed a satisfying 24 hours when the Sydney Roosters beat the Sharks 22-13.
The previous day, speculation over Murray's future ended when he was given a new two-year contract.
He then saw the Roosters overcome a 0-13 halftime deficit to score four tries in 22 minutes to run out convincing winners.
On Friday night, the Northern Eagles ran in seven tries to beat West Tigers 38-22 at Brookvale Oval.
