Canberra Raiders ... Blake Ferguson celebrates scoring his try. Source: News Limited
Melbourne Storm's unbeaten run has come to a crashing halt with Canberra upsetting the NRL champions 24-20 at AAMI Park.
4 Tries 4 | |
|---|---|
| Jesse Bromwich 16' | Blake Ferguson 10' |
| Billy Slater 34' | Blake Ferguson 40' |
| Justin O'Neill 58' | Jack Wighton 46' |
| Mahe Fonua 62' | Reece Robinson 53' |
2 Conversions 4 | |
| Cameron Smith 17' | Blake Ferguson 12' |
| Cameron Smith 35' | Blake Ferguson 40' |
| Blake Ferguson 48' | |
| Blake Ferguson 55' | |
With live-wire centre Blake Ferguson leading the charge through two first half tries, the Raiders survived a late Storm revival for a well-deserved victory.
Ferguson hit the headlines early this season when he was banned for a match for drinking alcohol on the roof of his house with axed fullback Josh Dugan and missing a recovery session.
He then suffered a fractured cheekbone in the Raiders' round four clash against Newcastle with this match his second back.
Campese said his teammate had the skills to press his claims for an Origin berth up against Blues incumbent Michael Jennings.
"I think so," Campese said when asked whether Ferguson was putting his name forward for selection.
"The way he defended he was very strong and with the ball he was palming them off and scored a couple of tries as well.
"I knew he was up for a big game, you could tell he wanted to go out there and play his best.
"Throughout the week he prepared the best I've seen he prepared and it showed on the football field."
Canberra coach David Furner said that Ferguson had come a long way.
"He's done a lot of hard work, although he's still got some to do.
"If he keeps creating opportunities where he can use his footwork and his fend and be nice and aggressive in defence then he's going to put his name forward."
The loss ended the Storm's winning streak at 15 straight and continued the Raiders' superb recent record at AAMI Park.
Canberra joined the Bulldogs as the only sides to have ever won three times in succession at the Storm's fortress.
Storm coach Craig Bellamy said their "luck" had run out.
"They were a lot more committed and determined than us," Bellamy said of Canberra, who have now won their past three in succession at the Storm's fortress.
"This has been coming; our past three home games have been like this and we've only really started playing when we've got into trouble.
"We were probably a little bit lucky against the Tigers and the Warriors and perhaps our luck ran out."
Ferguson scored all of the his side's 12 first half points before centre Jack Wighton and electric fullback Reece Robinson chimed in to open up a 24-12 lead.
The Storm hit back when halfback Cooper Cronk put a flat kick across field that Mahe Fonua fed back to Justin O'Neill, with the centre managing to get the ball across the line in the 58th minute.
It was one of only a few bright notes for O'Neill and Fonua, with the Storm's right flank repeatedly exposed.
Ferguson and fellow speedster Edrick Lee were a constant danger, with the winger unlucky not to score in the first half when video referees over-ruled an on-field call.
Fonua also got in on the action four minutes later when Ryan Hoffman batted another Cronk kick back in-field for the winger to touch down.
That closed the gap to four-points but despite the best efforts of Cronk, the Storm weren't able to find the try they desperately needed.
While Ferguson starred in the first half for the visitors, Jesse Bromwich and Billy Slater were the tryscorers for the Storm with the teams locked at 12-12 at halftime.
Wighton pushed aside some flimsy defence from his opposite Will Chambers, and then Robinson made a 70 metre dash to touch down and extend the lead to 12 points.
The Storm were never out of it but their attack lacked its usual precision and their defence was uncharacteristically poor as the Raiders celebrated their fourth win of the season.
The effort was all the more special with Canberra missing a swag of injured regulars and then losing forwards Tom Learoyd-Lahrs (foot) and Joe Picker (concussion) early in the match while hooker Glen Buttriss played with a fractured finger.
Learoyd-Lahrs will undergo further testing on nerve damage in his foot, which coach David Furner described as "drop foot".
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