NRL

The Storm were favoured to beat Newcastle on Saturday but were blown out of the water by a Knights team that has turned the corner big time in the past month.

The loss pushed Melbourne down one spot to fourth, and with the Raiders, Sharks and resurgent Cowboys hot on their hammer, Craig Bellamy's men need to make a statement in the next fortnight against Parramatta and Penrith.

Now sitting four points behind the 16th-placed Bulldogs it seems the wooden spoon is on its way to Concord for the second successive year unless Wests Tigers can spring some major upsets in the run home.

Tim Sheens' men face three of the big guns in the next three weeks with games against the Raiders and Warriors to follow Friday's clash against Souths, who now sit outside the eight after their loss to the Broncos.

In what was arguably their best opening 40 minutes of the year, Herbie Farnworth, Ezra Mam and Patrick Carrigan crossed for tries, with Adam Reynolds converting all three and adding a penalty in front of a boisterous crowd at The Gabba. 

While Brisbane's fourth-straight win keeps them right in the race for the minor premiership – jumping them to the top of the Telstra Premiership ladder for the meantime ahead of the Panthers playing on Saturday night – it could spell the end of the Roosters' hopes of playing finals in 2023. 

The Broncos continued their winning ways last weekend in a strong showing against the Rabbitohs, but were hit hard by the judiciary with both winger Jesse Arthars and forward Martin Taupau to miss this week's match with suspension.

The Roosters found form in their dominant win against the Titans, with their attack firing in the first half to post a 30-0 halftime lead before running out 36-18 winners.

An incredible late surge from Ricky Stuart's Raiders, with Elliot Whitehead and Jack Wighton tries saw the visitors go back-to-back in two minutes but a missed Jarrod Croker conversion put the game into extra time.

But when Johnson drilled the clutch moment with his first opportunity from 30m out, the Warriors broke the Raiders' hearts for a second time this season and booked a spot in the top three of the competition ladder.

The victory was just the fifth of the season for the Dragons and gave them some breathing space over Wests Tigers in the fight to avoid the wooden spoon.

The Dragons fired an early shot when Hunt took the line on from close range but he was denied by strong defence from Isaiah Papali'i.

On the back of a high tackle penalty against Jack de Belin, Wests Tigers marched up field and Junior Tupou disposed of Tyrell Sloan to score wide out to make it 4-0 to the visitors.

Knights star Kalyn Ponga brushed aside a rough night on the goal-kicking front to set up three of the side's seven tries and continue his purple patch of form since switching back to fullback. 

Wests Tigers didn't go away throughout the evening until a try to Tyson Gamble with seven minutes remaining put the Knights ahead by 14 to seal victory.

The Knights survived a horror opening set when the Wests Tigers appeared to have scored from a Will Smith kick before the NRL Bunker ruled Jahream Bula had knocked the ball forward for Tommy Talau to go over. 

As stated by Sharks CEO Dino Mezzatesta, this association with Lae Biscuits is a ground breaking partnership and is set to be of great benefit to both organisations.

“The Lae Biscuit Company have been long time supporters of rugby league in PNG and we thank Ian Chow and Lae Biscuits for considering the Sharks as a viable partner as they look to spread their wings into the Australian market,” Mezzatesta began.

Against an in-form Warriors side at a sold-out Go Media Stadium in Auckland, Cody Walker fired South Sydney to a 28-6 win which snapped a prior two-game losing run. 

Saturday's meeting with the Dogs at Accor Stadium marks the last time they will play in Sydney until the final round of the season, with a tough run coming up which includes 'home matches' in Perth, Carins and on the Sunshine Coast. 

Looking more like the 2022 version of themselves every week, the Eels have climbed from 14th to sixth on the ladder on the back of wins over the Rabbitohs, Cowboys, Bulldogs, Sea Eagles and Dolphins.

Brad Arthur's men have found their attacking mojo, averaging 35 points per game across those five matches on the back of some brilliant performances by Clint Gutherson and Mitch Moses, both of whom will be absent this week on NSW Origin duty.