As it happened: Raiders heat up NT; Cowboys, Sharks win in West

Rabbitohs v Cowboys at Optus Stadium

77th min: Drinkwater sealed the win with a penalty goal after being hit high by Keppie, who was placed on report and sent to the sinbin. Cowboys 24-16

72nd min: Gray has kept South Sydney's hopes alive after passing to Mitchell and performing a run around to receive a flick pass from the superstar playmaker before scoring. Cowboys 22 Rabbitohs 16

68th min: Purdue has scored his second try after another bone rattling tackle by Dearden shook the ball loose from Wighton and Jason Taumalo picked up before passing to the speedster. Cowboys 22 Rabbitohs 10

65th min: Rookie centre Jaxon Purdue has put the Cowboys back in front after slicing between Rabbitohs prop Sean Keppie and lock Lachlan Hubner after Tass lost the ball in a crunching tackle by Dearden and Taulagi. Cowboys 16 Rabbitohs 10 

57th min: Sam McIntyre levelled the scores when he pounced on a Reece Robson grubber kick from dummy half. Drinkwater missed the conversion attempt. Rabbitohs 10 Cowboys 10

56th min: Jack Wighton was placed on report for a hip drop after pulling Drinkwater down in a try saving tackle near the Rabbitohs line.

Crowd: 31,347

45th min: Rabbitohs forward Jai Arrow has capped a big week, in which he became a father and only arrived in Perth on Thursday night, by crashing through the Cowboys defence after steaming onto a short pass from halfback Jayden Sullivan. Rabbitohs 10 Cowboys 6

Halftime summary: Cowboys fullback Scott Drinkwater told Fox League that he and the players felt flat and were struggling in the conditions in Perth. The Cowboys have completed just 15 of their 23 sets of possession in the first half but lead 6-4 at the break, thanks to a Drinkwater penalty goal. In comparison, the Rabbitohs have completed 15 of their 19 sets but have had less possession. Souths fullback Jye Gray leads the run metres, having carried the ball for 120 metres in the opening 40 minutes.  

37th min: The Cowboys are set to go to halftime with the lead after Maroons and Samoan winger Murray Taulagi charged over to score, despite the attempted tackle of Tass, after Dearden, Drinkwater and Jaxon Purdue combined to create space out wide. Drinkwater missed the conversion attempt. Cowboys 6 Rabbitohs 4

23rd min: The Rabbitohs hit back almost immediately through new recruit Euan Aitken, who scored in his first match for the Rabbitohs after Latrell Mitchell held up a pass near the Cowboys line. Mitchell missed the conversion attempt. Rabbitohs 4 Cowboy 2 

19th min: Cowboys fullback Scott Drinkwater opened the scoring with a penalty goal after a scrum infringement by the Rabbitohs following a knock-on by winger Isaiah Tass of a Tom Dearden kick. Cowboys 2-0

The Rabbitohs are playing in Perth for the 13th time and Cody Walker told Fox League that fans were now recognising him in the street. WA Premier Roger Cook is among the Perth-based South Sydney fans attending the game

Bennett praise for Mitchell

Rabbitohs coach Wayne Bennett told Fox League that Latrell Mitchell was among the top five players in the game. 

"He's got to be in it with the skill level and all the wonderful attributes he has, so I just want him to come out there and settle down and play his game and the best to look after itself," Bennett told Fox League.

"He was pretty pleased with his game last week, and I was pretty pleased with his game, but he can do better than that. But that's a process that taken on two or three weeks for him to be back at his best.

"The Cowboys have got some wonderful players and they've had a bit of form in the last couple of weeks, so I hope we entertain everybody here today and everybody goes away happy with the performance for both teams."

Late Mail

Rabbitohs: Jai Arrow made a late dash to Perth to play for the Rabbitohs after his partner Berina gave birth to their daughter, Ayla Rae Arrow, during the week. Latrell Mitchell will captain South Sydney for the fourth time in his career and line up at five-eighth after injuries ravaged the Rabbitohs. Jayden Sullivan joins Mitchell in the halves, with Alex Johnston returning from a rib injury to fill the void left by Mikaele Ravalawa. Euan Aitken is set to play his first game of the season after recovering from a pectoral injury. South Sydney will line up 1-17, with Thomas Fletcher the 18th man. 

Cowboys: English forward John Bateman will miss Saturday's game due to blood virus, which North Queensland coach Todd Payten revealed had hospitalised him. Payten said Bateman had travelled to Perth to support his team-mates and would return to hospital after the match. Jeremiah Nanai was initially named to replace Bateman in the second-row but Payten has made a slight tweak on game day. Nanai reverts to the bench and Sam McIntyre has been added to the starting side. Harrison Edwards joins the interchange, with Thomas Mikaele the 18th man. Reuben Cotter has trained throughout the week and successfully overcome the illness that kept him out of last Friday's win over Penrith.

Sharks v Sea Eagles at Optus Stadium

Full-time: Manly threw plenty at their opponents in the final minute, but Cronulla have held firm to hold on to a tense six-point victory. The win snaps a two-game losing streak after last week's heartbreaking loss to the Raiders. 

The Sharks wore the Sea Eagles down with a physical defensive performance and while there were momentary lapses in concentration, Craig Fitzgibbon's men stood up when it mattered.

79th minute: Well, this just got a whole lot more interesting. Tommy Talau took an intercept and ran 80 metres down field before he was reeled in by Ronaldo Mulitalo. The tackle only delayed the inevitable, Daly Cherry-Evans scoring under the posts the following play. It's a six-point game with 67 seconds left to play. One set for Manly to pull off a miracle and force golden point. Sharks 24 - Sea Eagles 18

75th minute: They're not home yet but Sharks fans can breathe a little easier after cult hero Tom Hazelton charged over for his first try of the season. The prop has made a habit of scoring in big moments and this fits the bill.

The try came on the last tackle, Manly expecting Blayke Brailey to throw the ball out the back rather than hit the forward runner and Hazelton crashed through.

In other news, Sharks prop Addin Fonua-Blake left the field clutching at his leg a few minutes ago and he has now headed into the sheds for further treatment in what could be a major blow for Cronulla. Sharks 24 - Sea Eagles 12

65th minute: The Sharks have regained some degree of control, Mawene Hiroti finishing off a superb shift to the left wing. Braydon Trindall linked up with Nicho Hynes, who produced a double-pump to draw the defenders and create the space Hiroti eventually crashed through. 

Hynes' sideline conversion attempt hit the post and was waved away, keeping the margin at one converted try with 15 minutes to play. Sharks 18 - Sea Eagles 12

57th minute: Manly aren't just back in this, they are full of running. Cronulla were hot on the attack and looking to reclaim the upper hand, but Sea Eagles five-eighth Luke Brooks had other ideas. 

Brooks stuck his arm out, plucked a pass out of the air and raced 85 metres cut the margin two points. Sharks 14 - Sea Eagles 12

53rd minute: Sharks coach Craig Fitzgibbon will not be happy with the last couple of minutes from his side. An error in the set of six after points handed the Sea Eagles the ball in prime attacking field position and they made the most of a brief lapse in concentration by the Cronulla defenders. 

Manly's last-tackle play had broken down, leading to a disjointed defensive line for Reuben Garrick to break multiple tackles before producing a grubber for Clayton Faulalo to score his side's first try of the game. Manly are back in this and suddenly have plenty of confidence. Sharks 14 - Sea Eagles 6

47th minute: This time Will Kennedy will not be denied. A penalty put the Sharks on the attack but Manly looked to have them covered. Sea Eagles winger Tommy Talau looked to have shut down a right-side shift however he failed to wrap up the football and Jesse Ramien somehow managed to offload the ball to Kennedy. The fullback looked up, saw a broken defensive line and weaved his way to the tryline. Sharks 14 - Sea Eagles 0

46th minute: We've just had two major momentum swings in the space of two minutes. Sharks fullback Will Kennedy has made a habit of turning defence into attack and he put on another show for the fans in Perth. Kennedy secured a bomb before turning up field, bursting through a staggered defensive line and beating fullback Lehi Hopoate to score what appeared to be an electrifying length of the field try.

The Bunker, however, took a closer look at the kick receipt and ruled Sam Stonestreet obstructed Tommy Talau. Rather than six points to the Sharks, Manly received an attacking set of six and the Sea Eagles looked to have capitalised. 

A right-side shift ended with Clayton Faulalo diving for the corner and celebrating a crucial try. Replays, however, show the winger grounded the ball on the sideline and Cronulla breathed a sigh of relief. Sharks 8 - Sea Eagles 0

Half-time: Manly dominated the opening 20 minutes of the match, but the Sharks absorbed the pressure before flexing their muscles late to carry an eight-point lead into the break after Sam Stonestreet crossed for his second in the final play of the half.

The winger combined perfectly with Braydon Trindall for the second time in five minutes, this time pouncing on a grubber to extend his side's lead. Stonestreet's double is a major blow for the Sea Eagles and coach Anthony Seibold will need to ensure they score first in the second half. Sharks 8 - Sea Eagles 0

35th minute: The rest was short-lived and Cronulla were quick to put the foot down following the resumption. A couple of repeat sets of six helped the Sharks wear their opponents down and Manly eventually cracked. 

Five-eighth Braydon Trindall identified space down the short side, quickly redirected the attack and hit Sam Stonestreet with a brilliant cutout pass to secure his sixth try assist of the season. Sharks 4 - Sea Eagles 0

32nd minute: The fatigue is starting to build in the Saturday afternoon heat in Perth and while it's not the oppressive 35-degree heat that was present on Friday, it remains a warm afternoon heat.

With fatigue rising, the match is starting to open up and holes are appearing. Manly skipper Daly Cherry-Evans has sensed this and opted to kick the ball out at the end of a set to give his teammates a brief rest. Sharks 0 - Sea Eagles 0

23rd minute: Manly dominated the middle stages of this half but now it's Cronulla's turn to build some pressure in attacking territory. The Sharks were superb in defence to withstand multiple repeat sets of six before a Sea Eagles error eased the pressure. 

Cronulla's attempts to score the first points of the match looked promising, however they came to a sudden halt when star prop Addin Fonua-Blake spilled the ball. Sharks 0 - Sea Eagles 0

14th minute: There's been plenty of action at both ends of the field throughout the opening minutes of the game but neither side has been able to build sustained pressure. 

Manly are starting to gain the upper hand, with Daly Cherry-Evans forcing a line drop out with a well-placed kick. Cronulla's defence was up to the task and repelled their opponents but the Sea Eagles have the momentum and continue to push for first points. Sharks 0 - Sea Eagles 0

Kick-off: We are underway at Optus Stadium, with Blayke Brailey kicking off the first match of a spectacular double-header in Perth. Both Cronulla and Manly suffered defeats last week and they're optimistic a week on the road was the perfect tonic to help reverse their fortunes. 

Late mail: There were no changes to either side in Saturday's final team update, with the Sharks to line up 1-17. Manly had a change 24 hours before kick off, Tommy Talau coming on to the wing after Jason Saab succumbed to an ankle injury suffered in last week's loss to Melbourne.