Manly Sea Eagles have done NZ Warriors a favour in the NRL, defeating Canberra Raiders 19-18 at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium on Friday.
With the race for a top eight spot looking like it will go down to the wire, the ninth-placed Raiders couldn't hang on after racing out to a 12-0 lead over Manly at half-time.
Tries to Harley Smith-Shields and Bailey Simonsson gave Canberra a healthy lead at the break, only for Manly to claw their way back into the match.
Three tries in 21 minutes, scored by Haumole Olakau'atu, Morgan Harper and Curtis Sironen completely flipped the script, as Manly went from being 12-0 down to 18-12 ahead in the second half.
Sironen's try will be gratefully received by the Warriors, with the Manly second-rower helping out his brother - Warriors forward Bayley Sironen.
A field goal in the final minutes to Daly Cherry-Evans put the result beyond the Raiders, as Canberra's Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad scored a consolation try to close the gap to a point.
The loss sees the Raiders miss the chance to move to seventh, ahead of Gold Coast Titans and Newcastle Knights on the NRL ladder.
What's more, the result gives the Warriors the chance to close the gap on their competition in the top eight race.
The Kiwi side are currently 12th on the ladder with 18 points, level with the Dragons and Sharks, only behind on points differential.
If the Warriors can beat the 15th-placed Brisbane Broncos on Sunday, the Kiwi side could move as high as ninth on the ladder, should other results fall their way.
That cause was already aided by Melbourne Storm's victory over Gold Coast Titans on Thursday.
A victory by more than 28 points would see the Warriors directly leapfrog the Raiders, but also needing the Sharks to lose to Wests Tigers, and Dragons to lose to Sydney Roosters.
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