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Five-eighth Anthony Milford has put on a first-half masterclass to help steer Brisbane to a 29-6 NRL win over an injury-hit Cronulla at Suncorp Stadium.
Milestone man Anthony Milford has helped steer Brisbane to a drought-breaking 29-6 NRL win over an injury-hit Cronulla at Suncorp Stadium.
Five-eighth Milford celebrated his 150th NRL game with a first-half masterclass, answering his critics on Saturday night as the Broncos ended a worrying four-game losing streak.
Milford set up two of Brisbane's three opening-half tries and potted a field goal as the hosts stormed to a 21-0 buffer at the break and were never threatened against a Cronulla outfit struck down by yet more injuries.
The Sharks were behind the eight-ball from the outset when they lost centre Josh Dugan (hamstring) before kick-off then star playmaker Shaun Johnson succumbed to a suspected hamstring complaint in the 22nd minute.
It was a hammer blow to a Cronulla outfit who already had the likes of stars Matt Moylan, Aaron Woods and Wade Graham on the sidelines.
Brisbane showed no mercy, entertaining the 27,638-strong crowd to provide sweet relief for besieged coach Anthony Seibold.
The Broncos were under pressure after suffering their worst season start in 20 years but appeared to rectify their defensive woes overnight to avoid losing five-straight games for the first time since 2012.
It gave Brisbane a timely shot in the arm ahead of their next round grudge match against former Broncos coach Wayne Bennett's South Sydney.
"It doesn't feel like the pressure has come off ... but it's good to get a result - it give the guys confidence," Seibold said.
"We were much better tonight, much more consistent. The challenge now is preparing for a five day turnaround for the Rabbitohs."
Seibold dipped his hat to his under-fire pack who helped lay a platform before Milford ran rampant in the first half.
"This is certainly his best performance (of the year). I thought his kicking game was outstanding," he said of Milford.
While Milford silenced the cynics, winger Corey Oates - running 170m - was enormous along with centre Jack Bird (101m, 12 tackle breaks) against his former club Cronulla.
Brisbane's pack were led by props Matt Lodge (180m) and Payne Haas (153m) plus lock Tevita Pangai (160m) in his return from suspension.
Oates ran off Milford to open the scoring in the eighth minute after the Broncos made the visitors pay for fullback William Kennedy's shocking pass that led to a knock-on.
It marked Oates' seventh-consecutive game he had scored against the Sharks.
Glenn burrowed over in the 11th minute after a knock-on from 19-year-old Ronaldo Mulitalo, who made a nightmare NRL debut after being slotted onto the wing at the last minute in a reshuffled backline following Dugan's withdrawal and the hosts didn't look back.
"I will try and find 17 fit players next week. I might have to pull the jersey on again," said Cronulla coach John Morris.
