THE Canberra Raiders and Wests Tigers kept in touch with the National Rugby League top eight with solid wins yesterday, the Tigers particularly impressive in breaking their four-game losing streak with a victory over the South Sydney Rabbitohs.

A destructive two-try burst from Canberra centre Marshall Chalk helped the Raiders to a 34-12 home win over the Sydney Roosters, while the Tigers' Benji Marshall recaptured some of his 2005 form to help Wests trounce the Rabbitohs 36-12 at ANZ Stadium.

The Raiders grabbed two valuable points against their more fancied opponents at Canberra Stadium in a game that slowly degenerated into a scrappy affair played in steady rain and cold.

Chalk scored his first four-pointer in the 33rd minute and went in again right on the half-time siren thanks to winger Colin Best's grubber close to the line.

Leading 18-0 at half-time, Canberra continued its dominance three minutes into the second when winger Adrian Purtell snaffled a tidy chip from five-eighth Terry Campese to close the door on the Roosters, with centre Joel Monaghan providing his own double later in the stanza to add the cream.

With rain continuing to pour, the Roosters' shoulders began to drop despite the valiant efforts of Willy Mason who gained almost 150 metres in attack and a solid kicking game from Braith Anasta.

Anasta grabbed a consolation try in the 57th minute when he showed his brilliance by peeling away the Raiders' defence and scoring under the sticks.

The Roosters stay in fourth place on the ladder despite consecutive losses while the Raiders are a point out of eighth spot.

At ANZ Stadium, Robbie Farah was brilliant at half-back for the Tigers, but Marshall was the key.

He grubbered early for a Taniela Tuiaki try, but it was some of his actions that didn't result in tries that showed he was back in form.

A quick tap 10 metres out from his own line ended in a 50-metre sprint downfield, and there were two or three mesmerising no-look passes that had spectators and players equally dumbfounded.

The Tigers didn't have it all their own way, the sin-binning of Tim Moltzen for a professional foul — which coach Tim Sheens described as a "very ordinary" decision — allowing Jamie Simpson to lock up the scores.

Beau Ryan's try just before the break proved crucial as the Tigers piled on two more in quick time straight after the restart, the first a brilliantly worked set play from a scrum where Farah sent Chris Lawrence away for his first of a try-scoring double that Ryan and Tuiaki matched.
AAP