A breakout performance from Melbourne fullback Jahrome Hughes has helped orchestrate a 32-10 win over the Warriors that ensures the Storm top the standings at the midway point of the NRL season.
Not at their best until the second half, Melbourne were irrepressible in fighting back from 10-2 down late in the first half in Auckland on Saturday to register a fourth straight win.
It was their eighth successive defeat of the Warriors, who slump to a 4-8 record and are gazing at a sizeable task to play finals football.
Kiwi-born Hughes was the chief executioner, bagging the first double of his NRL career with crucial tries either side of halftime.
The 24-year-old did so after switching to halfback, where he played the last 50 minutes after Brodie Croft was forced off with a head knock.
His energy, the craft of Cameron Smith and the toil of a pack led by Dale Finucane allowed Melbourne to take control of a match dogged by blustery winds and a high penalty count.
Despite fielding Josh Addo-Carr, Will Chambers, Cameron Munster and Felise Kaufusi three days after their State of Origin duty, they owned the second half, scoring 24 unanswered points.
Coach Craig Bellamy was fulsome in his praise of the Origin quartet.
"All of those guys wanted to back up. There was no pressure on them to play but they all wanted to play and they all did a great job for us," he said.
"To go in two points down (at halftime) with the start we had was a pretty good effort.
"Then we had the wind in the second half so we knew exactly what we wanted to do."
Kodi Nikorima was a central figure in all three first-half tries as the Warriors ground out a 10-8 lead.
His speed created space for impressive winger Ken Maumalo to bag his ninth try of the term before the diminutive five-eighth crossed courtesy of a Blake Green grubber.
However, Nikorima was the villain when Hughes stepped inside him after a neat Smith blindside switch.
Hughes strolled over for his second in contentious fashion, with the Bunker ignoring Warriors claims of obstruction from Finucane on Issac Luke.
That try sucked the fight out of the hosts in alarming fashion, Warriors coach Stephen Kearney said.
"It was disappointing because I just thought from that point on there was a real lack of digging our heels in and making it hard for them," he said.
"We just perpetuated things by allowing them to march upfield pretty easily on the back of some penalties that gifted them field position."
Melbourne's late dominance resulted in tries to Suliasi Vunivalu, Jesse Bromwich and Marion Seve.
The Bromwich try was meritorious given Melbourne had been reduced to 12 players following the sin-binning of Christian Welsh for persistent team offending.
AAP
