The Sydney Roosters have continued their impressive NYC form, overpowering the Melbourne Thunderbolts 32-10.
After taking a 10-6 lead into the break, the home side kicked on in the second half to seal their eighth win of the season.
Both sides came out with plenty of attacking intent in the early exchanges. The Roosters were given the first opportunity of the night, but some solid Melbourne defence saw Brendan Elliot held up.
The visitors then chanced their arm in the following set, with hooker Alex Langbridge slicing straight through, only to ignore a number of support players on his inside. It looked as if Richard Kennar had scored from the ensuing play, only for the officials to call the final pass forward.
The Thunderbolts again threatened the line after a half break by big man Francis Tualau.
Again though, the hosts were able to hold them out on the back of some valiant last ditch defence.
It became apparent that both teams were keen to play an open brand of football, with neither side willing to kick on the last tackle.
The Roosters looked set to score when Samisoni Langi raced down the left touch line. The ball was quickly spread to the right, where Tyler Cornish's delicate chip just eluded a flying Jack Goodsell.
Two minutes later, Willis Meehan claimed the opening try of the night, only for the touch judges to once again intervene.
Finally, in the 14th minute, the third placed Roosters breached the Melbourne line. Captain Rhyse Martin latched onto a Langi short ball and beat three defenders on his way to the line.
The home side extended their advantage in the 25th minute, when they once again exploited the visitors' questionable right side defence. A sweeping play involving Langi and Nene Macdonald saw the fullback go over untouched in the corner.
The visitors scored a crucial try on the stroke of halftime when Kurt Mann capitalised on a rare error from Macdonald. The Roosters' fullback couldn't hold on to a Matt McGahan grubber that skidded through on the greasy surface.
Despite the late set back, the hosts still maintained a handy 10-6 lead at the interval.
It didn't take long for the Roosters to reclaim their ten point buffer, courtesy of a rare try to interchange forward Clarrie Moore.
However, the Thunderbolts refused to give in, and hit back almost immediately. The Melbourne NYC side showed their bench was every bit as lethal, with interchange hooker Herschel Gideon scoring a terrific solo try.
Jack Goodsell looked set to score after racing through some soft defence, only for Melbourne fullback Denny Solomona to pull off a brilliant try saving tackle.
The visitors were denied a third try when Gideon was ruled to have illegally promoted the football over the line.
After going agonisingly close on a number of occasions, Brendan Elliot finally got the four pointer he deserved. It looked sloppy at the start, but the winger did very well to beat a stack of would be defenders on his way to the line. Langi nailed the difficult kick to push the lead out to 12.
The Roosters sealed the two competition points when Goodsell fell on a loose ball in the 70th minute.
The flying winger completed his double five minutes later when he latched onto a lofted cut out pass from Tyler Cornish.
The home side did well to shut down Melbourne live wire Denny Solomona, who has been one of the most dangerous fullbacks in the entire NYC.
It was always going to be a tough ask for the Thunderbolts, who were beaten in the yardage battle by over 500 metres.
The only sour note on the emphatic victory was a possible knee injury to boom lock forward John Asiata.
The 32-10 win consolidates third place on the ladder ahead of next week's bye.
After taking a 10-6 lead into the break, the home side kicked on in the second half to seal their eighth win of the season.
Both sides came out with plenty of attacking intent in the early exchanges. The Roosters were given the first opportunity of the night, but some solid Melbourne defence saw Brendan Elliot held up.
The visitors then chanced their arm in the following set, with hooker Alex Langbridge slicing straight through, only to ignore a number of support players on his inside. It looked as if Richard Kennar had scored from the ensuing play, only for the officials to call the final pass forward.
The Thunderbolts again threatened the line after a half break by big man Francis Tualau.
Again though, the hosts were able to hold them out on the back of some valiant last ditch defence.
It became apparent that both teams were keen to play an open brand of football, with neither side willing to kick on the last tackle.
The Roosters looked set to score when Samisoni Langi raced down the left touch line. The ball was quickly spread to the right, where Tyler Cornish's delicate chip just eluded a flying Jack Goodsell.
Two minutes later, Willis Meehan claimed the opening try of the night, only for the touch judges to once again intervene.
Finally, in the 14th minute, the third placed Roosters breached the Melbourne line. Captain Rhyse Martin latched onto a Langi short ball and beat three defenders on his way to the line.
The home side extended their advantage in the 25th minute, when they once again exploited the visitors' questionable right side defence. A sweeping play involving Langi and Nene Macdonald saw the fullback go over untouched in the corner.
The visitors scored a crucial try on the stroke of halftime when Kurt Mann capitalised on a rare error from Macdonald. The Roosters' fullback couldn't hold on to a Matt McGahan grubber that skidded through on the greasy surface.
Despite the late set back, the hosts still maintained a handy 10-6 lead at the interval.
It didn't take long for the Roosters to reclaim their ten point buffer, courtesy of a rare try to interchange forward Clarrie Moore.
However, the Thunderbolts refused to give in, and hit back almost immediately. The Melbourne NYC side showed their bench was every bit as lethal, with interchange hooker Herschel Gideon scoring a terrific solo try.
Jack Goodsell looked set to score after racing through some soft defence, only for Melbourne fullback Denny Solomona to pull off a brilliant try saving tackle.
The visitors were denied a third try when Gideon was ruled to have illegally promoted the football over the line.
After going agonisingly close on a number of occasions, Brendan Elliot finally got the four pointer he deserved. It looked sloppy at the start, but the winger did very well to beat a stack of would be defenders on his way to the line. Langi nailed the difficult kick to push the lead out to 12.
The Roosters sealed the two competition points when Goodsell fell on a loose ball in the 70th minute.
The flying winger completed his double five minutes later when he latched onto a lofted cut out pass from Tyler Cornish.
The home side did well to shut down Melbourne live wire Denny Solomona, who has been one of the most dangerous fullbacks in the entire NYC.
It was always going to be a tough ask for the Thunderbolts, who were beaten in the yardage battle by over 500 metres.
The only sour note on the emphatic victory was a possible knee injury to boom lock forward John Asiata.
The 32-10 win consolidates third place on the ladder ahead of next week's bye.
