The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs have moved a step closer to securing a return to the finals after defeating the Canberra Raiders 22-18 in front of a sold-out Belmore crowd.
Breaking a run of nine straight losses against the Raiders to move into fifth position on the ladder, the Bulldogs stood tall in one of the games of the season while the Raiders only gained admirers with a gritty performance in Josh Papalii's 300th game for the club.
In a fierce opening which saw the Bulldogs repel the Raiders multiple times inside their 20 metre zone, a spectacular display of power and footwork saw Stephen Crichton (17th minute) fend off Sebastian Kris and Jordan Rapana to open the scoring.
Taking advantage of a powerful run by Joseph Tapine that resulted in a repeat set, interchange forward Trey Mooney (21st minute) responded by crashing underneath the black dot for his first try of the season.
As both teams traded sets as the half wore on, a Matt Burton penalty goal levelled proceedings before a wayward two-point field goal attempt from Jamal Fogarty with seconds remaining saw the teams switch ends locked at 6-all.
Having produced a solo effort to open the scoring in the first half, Crichton (45th minute) did likewise after halftime by executing a grubber and grounding before the dead ball line to give the home side a 10-6 lead.
Josh Addo-Carr (52nd minute) marked his return following a two-month stint on the sidelines with an untouched run down the sideline after Bronson Xerri exposed the Raiders defence from a scrum.
The Raiders refused to let the result slip away and struck back with Jamal Fogarty threading a kick in-goal that allowed Matt Timoko (59th minute) to narrow the margin to four points.
An inspiring act of courage from Kaeo Weekes dislodged the ball from Viliame Kikau's grasp - preventing a certain try - however the Bulldogs weren't to be denied as Crichton caught a bomb from Burton and found Addo-Carr (68th minute) in support to the delight of 18,110 supporters in attendance.
A towering bomb from Adam Cook forced an error which saw the Raiders strike immediately from a scrum through Jordan Rapana (72nd minute), whose 106th try saw him surpass Brett Mullins as the club's third highest try-scorer.
A hail mary bomb from Cook on the final play of the game failed to produce a miracle as the Bulldogs held on to record a deserved 22-18 win at their spiritual home.
Next week, the Raiders will return home on Saturday afternoon to take on the Sea Eagles, while the Bulldogs will travel to Kogarah on Saturday night to face the Dragons.