[Source: NRL]

Jahrome Hughes steered Melbourne to a gritty 16-6 defeat of Canberra but the win may have come at a cost for the Storm and Maroons after Origin star Xavier Coates suffered a hamstring injury.

Coates was visibly upset as he came from the field in the 74th minute after attempting to score a try from a Tyran Wishart kick and had to be assisted into the dressing room by two Storm trainers.

The star winger was a key member of the Queensland team in the first two Origin matches but is now in doubt for the July 17 decider at Suncorp Stadium.

The injury to Coates, who suffered a hamstring injury earlier in the season, overshadowed the bravery of the Raiders, who lost two players to HIAs and were forced to defend for long periods of the match.

Hughes laid on a try, produced two line-break assists, made nine tackle breaks, ran 158m with the ball and kicked for 343m.

A lone first half try to prop Josh King in the 37th minute gave the Storm a 6-0 lead after the Raiders withstood an onslaught from the home team.

Just a week after conceding eight tries in a 48-24 loss to Wests Tigers, the Raiders spent much of the first half defending their line under relentless pressure from the Storm but stood firm until King crashed over just before the interval.

Melbourne had 60 per cent possession in the first half as the Raiders conceded nine errors, three penalties and five six-again calls but their defence held up until just before halftime.

By fulltime, Canberra had been forced to make 425 tackles to 273 by the Storm, who had possession for 33.15 minutes compared to 22.34 minutes for the Raiders.

The Raiders came out firing in the second half and fullback Kaeo Weekes raced 90 metres for a brilliant individual try after fielding a Wishart kick two minutes after the interval to level the scores at 6-6.

However, errors continued to prove costly for Canberra and the Storm dominated field position and possession in the second half.

Kiwi forward Shawn Blore put Melbourne back in front when he crashed over in the 45th minute after hooker Bronson Garlick dummied and held up a pass close to the line.

Much touted Storm rookie Jack Howarth gave his side a 10-point buffer on the scoreboard when he muscled his way over the tryline off a Hughes pass in the 52nd minute.

Coates appeared to have sealed the win in the 74th minute but he failed to ground the ball as he dived in-goal and immediately called out to team-mates that he had injured his hamstring.

Jordan Rapana followed Coates into the dressing room soon after, joining rookie Jordan Martin, whose long awaited NRL debut lasted just five minutes before he was forced off for a HIA.