Match Report

Across an 80 minutes in which they had to overcome the second-half sin-binning of captain James Tedesco and the loss of backline stars Joseph Manu and Joseph-Aukuso Suaali'i to injuries, the Roosters charged down two field goals in the dying minutes which would likely have sent the game to golden point, after Walker had put them in front with a clutch drop goal. 

Making it all the more impressive, Walker was playing through an ankle injury which earlier in the game had him in visible discomfort. 

With James Fisher-Harris laying the line for superstar Nathan Cleary to take control of proceedings, the Panthers had the match well in hand when they led 20-0 at half-time.

Penrith struck the first blow in the fifth minute when Cleary went to the line and found prop Moses Leota who sent a perfectly timed long pass out to Brian To'o for his 18th try of the season. Cleary converted for a 6-0 lead.

Trailing 20-0 with seven minutes remaining at Suncorp Stadium, the Storm had Papenhuyzen taken from the field on a medicab after he came reeling out of a tackle in agony.

With Payne Haas and Pat Carrigan providing the muscle and Reece Walsh the magic, the Broncos snapped a 14-game losing run against the Storm to earn themselves a week off.

Early mistakes by Nick Meaney and Eli Katoa put the Storm under serious heat and the Broncos capitalised through Kotoni Staggs, who left four defenders in his wake on a powerful charge to the tryline. 

Trent Robinson's side now face a nervous wait with the Cowboys and Sharks upcoming matches set to determine their finals fate. 

Jason Demetriou's men were in the arm-wrestle for majority of the match however an early reshuffle exposed too many cracks in their defence and attack as South Sydney drew the curtain on a disappointing end to their 2023 season.

Seven minutes into the match the Roosters struck the first blow when Alex Johnston fumbled a Walker cross field kick and stand-in centre Corey Allan pounced on the ball in goal. Joseph Suaalii's conversion was wide.

Despite a disappointing end to the season, having fallen out of finals contention, Anthony Seibold's side gave their home fans something to cheer about in the final round with young guns Tolutau Koula and Haumole Olakau'atu running riot and making a big statement for the 2024 season.

Trbojevic made it a milestone match to remember when he went over in the 57th minute for his first try since Round 22 last season, thanks to star halfback Daly Cherry-Evans. 

Needing to win their final two games and hope other results go their way, Todd Payten's men took care of the first part of the equation with a polished six-try display in front of 33,449 fans in Brisbane.

The Cowboys grabbed the first try of the night in the 11th minute when Dolphins fullback Jamayne Isaako spilled a bomb and the ball came down to Tom Dearden who spun it wide for Zac Laybutt to race away and score.

Four minutes later the Cowboys had a second when Kyle Feldt crossed for the 128th try of his career to close within two of Matt Bowen's club record of 130.

With their season all but over, Parramatta finished on a high with a 32-18 triumph in the derby clash before a sold out BlueBet Stadium crowd but Penrith were left with more to worry about than a rare loss.

The Panthers now need to beat the Cowboys next weekend and rely on the Broncos losing to Canberra or Melbourne to claim a third minor premiership in four years but of more concern is how long Luai will be sidelined.

The NSW and Samoa playmaker watched the final 53 minutes from the bench after reportedly dislocating his left shoulder trying to ground the ball for a try.

Melbourne trailed 18-4 before Warbrick crossed for two tries and fellow winger Xavier Coates scored in an eight-minute period before halftime and they again had to come from behind in the second term.

Kiwis halfback Jahrome Hughes scored a try and produced three try assists to help steer the Storm home and enable them to leapfrog the Sharks into fourth place, while the Dragons remain in danger of finishing with the wooden spoon.

The Panthers looked under threat midway through the second half when the Titans ran in two tries to narrow a 22-6 half-time deficit before premiership-winning stars Nathan Cleary, Dylan Edwards and Stephen Crichton took control.

A double to Edwards and try assists through Cleary and Crichton fended off any thought the Titans would come back and win after Alofiana Khan-Pereira and David Fifita crossed after half-time. 

In a see-sawing contest that built up to an even scoreline in the final stages, a Jamayne Isaako field goal with four minutes remaining appeared to give the Dolphins victory before Koroisau provided a short kick-off to get the ball back. 

When Isaako and Tesi Niu were penalised for taking Junior Tupou into touch it was Koroisau who put his hand up to take the unlikeliest of penalty goals from out wide - a 40-metre effort from the 30-metre line on the left sideline.