Brisbane 18 Cronulla 12

RICKY STUART gave Paul Gallen the option to not front the media conference following last night's 18-12 loss to the Broncos.

After the Sharks captain was placed on report for a high tackle that had Broncos forward David Stagg groggily leaving the field, the easy option was to bunker down in the rooms. Let Brett Kimmorley speak to the vultures.

Despite the reputation that precedes him, and the judgment that will no doubt follow in the next few days, Gallen faced his music when most players would not.

"It was a total accident," he said of the 55th-minute incident. "There were three or four Brisbane players who said it to me, too. Karmichael Hunt and others."

But Gallen knows he has a stench about him. His head dropped as soon referee Shayne Hayne placed him on report. He was suspended for three matches earlier this year for that facial on Titans forward Anthony Laffranchi. He's since been universally described as a "grub".

"Because it's Paul Gallen, it will create more attention outside of us," Stuart said. "It was one of those accidental shots to the head c There was no malice. I feel that's the way the panel will see it.

"I can understand the referee wanted to have a look at it. The judiciary will want to have a look at it. But it was accidental. I think you would find the Brisbane people will think the same thing."

Did they? "It appeared to be high," Broncos coach Wayne Bennett said. "He's a tough player who plays a tough game a footy. Sometimes they get a bit high. It's not my call."

For his part, Bennett was more concerned about his side's unpolished yet gritty win that was only sealed with seven minutes to go with a try to man-of-the-match Greg Eastwood, which assured the result and keeps the Broncos embedded within the top eight.

A try to Sharks back-rower Grant Millington with less than three minutes remaining and a Luke Covell conversion that bounced off the left upright but stayed in gave the Sharks one chance of taking the game into extra-time but the Broncos held on.

When his side triumphed last week against the Cowboys, Bennett derided the performance as "rubbish".

This time?

"Better. Is that an adjective? We started to turn it around today," he said. "We can do something in the comp now if we can keep improving on that."

The signs weren't there, for either side, in the first half, with the Broncos clutching onto a 2-0 lead for most of the period.

Indeed, if any word could best sum up the frustration, it came from Sharks back-rower and devout Morman Fraser Anderson, who dropped the magic f-word after coughing up possession.

The four-pointer the crowd had craved came with six minutes before the break when the Sharks failed to defuse a bomb and the ball fell into Stagg's hands.

He passed it back to Eastwood, who momentarily looked like a rabbit in the headlights, unsure what to do, before placing a deft chip kick behind the Sharks' defensive line for winger Denan Kemp, who crossed out wide to give his side an 8-0 half-time lead.

"I'm pleased for Greg," Bennett said of the Kiwi international's game. "We all know what he's capable of. We want him to be our best player. He's got more natural ability than most of our players but his problem is that he has to do it every week for us."

Eastwood agreed: "Wayne's been talking to me about it for a few weeks now. I want the consistency to go to the World Cup [for New Zealand]."

The Broncos gained further ascendancy in the 58th minute when back-rower Sam Thaiday charged over to push side out to a 14-0 lead.

But even after Eastwood's try, Stuart was not convinced his side deserved to lose. "Without being disrespectful, but that was two bad shots we missed on Eastwood," Stuart said. "They were two very soft tries. It wasn't anything that was brilliant. We defended very well for most of the match."

Broncos captain Darren Lockyer, in his third match back from the knee injury that has plagued him all season, suffered a head knock but finished the match. So, too, halfback Peter Wallace.

Along with Stagg, they aren't expected to miss the match against the Raiders.

The Broncos last night announced they had signed Dragons back-rower Lagi Setu for next season.

BRISBANE 18 (G Eastwood, D Kemp, S Thaiday tries; M Ennis 3 goals) bt CRONULLA 12 (B Kearney, G Millington tries; L Covell 2 goals) at Suncorp Stadium. Referee: S Hayne.

Crowd: 27,905.