SO OFTEN, the biggest plays are the ones which don't actually bring points, but are indicative of the level of commitment and desperation necessary for a team to get anywhere in the NRL.

Eight minutes to go at Skilled Park. Penrith lead 30-22, but victory isn't assured. The Panthers have let too many games slip in the past few years, and the Gold Coast are close enough to still believe they have a chance.

Titans winger Jordan Rapana collects the ball on his own line from a Panthers kick and starts to run it back. Enter Petero Civoniceva.

The Penrith prop and captain - all 32 years and 110kg of him - stalks the young flyer across the field and manages not only to tackle him, but force him into the in-goal in the process. The Panthers get the ball back and kill the game from there, adding another try a couple of minutes later to end it 36-22.

Second-rower Frank Pritchard, the scorer of that last try - his second for the night - is surely learning a lot from Civoniceva. Pritchard has had his ups and downs at the club. He has wanted out in the past. But he will become a better player just from having Civoniceva around.

The former Bronco is probably the buy of the season. His age doesn't seem to matter. He is the ultimate professional who doesn't knock himself around off the field, and that has got to add a couple of years to his career for a start.

Warriors prop Steve Price, Civoniceva's long-time front-row partner in the Queensland team, is from the same mould. And Price is 34, so you've got to believe Civoniceva is going to be able to keep doing what he does for a while yet.

His commitment to getting his team to go forward with those powerful hit-ups, backed up by quick play-the-balls, is relentless. His defence is unyielding as well. Yet, on top of that workload, he still finds the energy and enthusiasm to make the plays that can knock the wind out of the opposition. That is what takes him from being a very good player to a great one.

Penrith knew they had let themselves down badly in the previous round, when they lost to Newcastle despite playing at home and having the penalty count heavily in their favour. They were clinging to eighth place on 19 points, with the next five teams all on 18. It was time to get the job done or face dropping out of the top eight. They did it pretty well.

The Warriors continued their resurrection with a big away win over the Bulldogs. The Warriors were the outsiders when betting opened on the match, but the late withdrawal through injury of Bulldogs star Sonny Bill Williams turned the market around and the visitors started as favourites.

The absence of Williams had the predicted effect. He has been the most threatening player in attack for the Bulldogs and without him they were always on the back foot. The Warriors scored six tries in the first half to set up a 40-22 win.

It was always going to be intriguing to see how Cronulla responded to the beating they got from Manly in the previous round. Newcastle were coming to Toyota Stadium as a team playing with confidence and including probably the hottest player in the competition at the moment in Kurt Gidley.

The game looked like one that would go down to the wire and it did. The Sharks squeezed home 16-13. It may not have been pretty, but it will do a lot to boost their confidence after the Sea Eagles had dented it.