Dallas Cowboys

Melbourne moves 2 points clear into 1st place in NRL

Published May. 21, 2017 7:09 a.m. ET

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AP

SYDNEY (AP) The Melbourne Storm moved two points clear of three chasing teams to claim first place after 11 rounds in the National Rugby League following a 14-6 win Sunday over South Sydney.

The Storm's ninth win in 11 matches left it ahead of Brisbane, Cronulla and the Sydney Roosters, who all have eight wins from 11.

In other Sunday matches, center Latrell Mitchell set up two tries and scored another as the Sydney Roosters beat Canterbury 24-18, while Penrith overcame a 14-0 first-half deficit to beat Newcastle 30-20.

Fullback Jordan Rapana scored a try with seven minutes remaining Saturday to give Canberra a 22-16 win over Parramatta, ending a three-game losing streak. The match was level at 16-16 at the Olympic stadium before Rapana's try ensured Raiders captain Jarrod Croker celebrated his 200th-game milestone with a win.

Earlier Saturday, Manly beat the Gold Coast Titans 30-10. On Friday, St. George Illawarra beat the New Zealand Warriors 30-14 and the Brisbane Broncos defeated the Wests Tigers 36-0 for their sixth consecutive win.

Cronulla overcame a 14-point halftime deficit with three unanswered tries to beat North Queensland 18-14. The defending champion Sharks took the lead with 14 minutes to play when Sosaia Feki scampered down the left touchline for a try.

Three North Queensland turnovers helped Cronulla's comeback.

''We were in a position to win that game,'' Cowboys coach Paul Green said. ''But we just put ourselves under too much pressure. If we want to hand the ball over on halfway, then 14 points is not enough.''

The Cowboys later announced that Australian and State of Origin star Johnathan Thurston was set to finish his career with North Queensland after signing a one-year contract extension.

Thurston, 34, joined the Cowboys in 2005 after three years at Canterbury, where he won a premiership in his final year, before leading North Queensland to the 2015 NRL title.

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