Dan Ginnane said it “might be a season-saving moment” and after looking on track for their sixth loss in a row, the feeling must be sheer relief in the Bulldogs’ sheds on Friday night.

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Cameron Ciraldo’s side overcame a 18-6 halftime deficit to down the Origin-ravaged Melbourne Storm 30-20 at Accor Stadium.

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It was far from a clinical win in wet conditions, but the Bulldogs showed the kind of fight and heart that had been missing in recent week as they rallied for a much-needed two points.

In a week which saw his name in the headlines after Phil Gould admitted Lachlan Galvin is not the club’s long-term halfback, Matt Burton responded with his best game of the year.

The Bulldogs five-eighth ran all over the Storm, finishing with 194 metres and nine tackle busts to go with a pair of linebreaks.

Canterbury’s new-look backline, which included Jethro Rinakama and Marcelo Montoya on the wings, combined for over 900 run metres with Jacob Kiraz starring at fullback for the injured Connor Tracey.

Kiraz, who was considered an Origin bolter earlier in the year, rumbled his way to 245 metres and six tackle busts along with the decisive try in the 77th minute.

Meanwhile, Max King led the way up front with 140 metres and Jack Underhill enjoyed what was called a “breakout” performance in commentary as he added 82 metres off the bench and came up with a crucial chargedown.

It was a frustrating night for the Storm, who had a comfortable halftime lead but completed just 50 per cent of their sets in the second half.

‘Galvin’s Best position is five-eighth’ | 01:07

BIG GUNS STEP UP FOR BULLDOGS

The Bulldogs looked like a completely different side after the break with Bronson Xerri and Matt Burton unstoppable with the ball.

Xerri had his best game in first grade with 226 metres and 13 tackles busts, while Burton ran for 198 metres and had nine tackle busts as they destroyed the Storm’s right-edge defence.

Lachlan Galvin, meanwhile, showed he can be the club’s long-term halfback with a couple of lovely passes to set up tries.

POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS TO DOGS’ INJURY BLOWS

The win came at a huge cost with Preston suffering a broken forearm just 12 minutes into Friday’s showdown.

Preston was forced from the field early in the first half after making a tackle on Warbrick and is expected to miss several weeks in yet another blow for Canterbury who are already without Viliame Kikau (torn pec) and will need to find another edge forward to help them during the Origin period.

Fullback Connor Tracey was a late scratching and is expected to miss several weeks with a hamstring injury, but there was a silver lining with Jacob Kiraz returning and barging over to clinch the two points with a powerful try at the death.

It was a good moment for Kiraz who conceded a try earlier in the night after he desperately tried to prevent a Jahrome Hughes 40/20, only for him to bat the ball back inside for Moses Leo to score.

Rookie Underhill could earn some more minutes with Preston sidelined, with the cult hero smashing Alec MacDonald and then coming up with a crucial charge down and recovery with the game on the line.

HISTORY REPEATS

Melbourne’s inability to close out contests came back to haunt them as they squandered a 12-point half-time lead to undo their recent good work.

Players will be having nightmares of last year’s grand final when they blew a double-digit lead against the Broncos, with the Storm again unable to finish things off when they looked set to make it three wins on the trot.

Melbourne completed just 50 per cent of their sets in the second half, with two of the errors leading directly to Canterbury tries.

They started the night so well with Leo bagging a first-half double, but they desperately missed Origin stars Cameron Munster and Harry Grant who would have provided an attacking spark.

The loss leaves their finals hopes hanging by a thread, with the Storm set to be without Shawn Blore next week after he failed a head injury assessment at half-time.

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