The Warriors came from behind to beat the Titans 27-18 at Mt Smart Stadium on Saturday night to go into their bye week within touching distance of the top eight.
In the game celebrating Simon Mannering's 250th appearance in the Warriors jersey, they managed to come back from a losing position for just the second time this season, by gradually winning the battle up the middle.
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Warriors turn it on after break
Shaun Johnson's running game was the difference, as the Warriors sent Simon Mannering out a winner in his 250th appearance.
It won't go down as one of their best games of the season and their right-edge defence did look shaky in the first half, but this win could be one of their more significant.
"It's a privilege to be at the club for this long, when you've played this many games it means there aren't many left, so you make the most of it, enjoy it while you can and tonight was definitely a special one," Mannering said.
Although Mannering was captain, he didn't come to the post match press conference, leaving that responsibility to Shaun Johnson, who said there was a strong desire in the team to win this game for Mannering.
"Everyone respects Simon," Johnson said.  "It was in the back of the minds of our leaders especially. Tommy [Leuluai] spoke to me a few times about really getting this one done for him and it drove me that little bit more."
The Titans were also hovering around the top eight and over the remainder of the season it's going to be games like this one that will be the most important.
While the day started so well, there would have been concerns before it began with the Warriors losing Ryan Hoffman, succumbing to a virus, which meant Mannering took over the captaincy, Charlie Gubb started a game for the first time, at lock, and Bunty Afoa was brought onto the interchange to make his NRL debut.
The start of the game wasn't good either as Blake Ayshford put a dreadful grubber kick that went straight into the arms of fullback Josh Hoffman, who gathered the ball and ran 90 metres for the try.
However, Ayshford made amends in the 10th minute, scoring a try in similar fashion, by intercepting a floating pass from Tyrone Roberts and racing 85 metres to score.
In the 18th minute the Titans got their second try with Nene Macdonald easily out-jumping Tuimoala Lolohea to catch a high ball in goal, with Macdonald twisting his body as he fell to ground the ball.
The Titans looked to expose Lolohea to the high ball again six minutes later, but this time Chris McQueen dropped the ball once he had caught it by the corner flag.
Seven minutes from halftime Shaun Johnson made a great break, then offloaded the ball in the tackle but the attack broke down when Afoa couldn't catch the pass.
The loose ball was knocked on by a Titans player and from the resulting scrum the Warriors moved the ball quickly to the right edge, where Lolohea managed to ground it in goal.
Seven minutes into the second half Titans centre Karl Lawton, on debut, possibly broke his leg in a tackle and had to be stretchered off the field.
A fight broke out a couple of minutes later when Nathan Peats slapped Solomone Kata in the face. Kata responded with a harder slap and around eight players got involved in the melee.
But it was the Titans who scored next with a penalty from Roberts in the 53rd minute, which the Warriors responded to with a penalty of their own four minutes later.
Then in the 61st minute the Warriors had another penalty close to the Titans' line and as is the trend this season, Mannering immediately pointed at the posts to go for the kick, which Issac Luke nailed to put his side in front for the first time.
This was backed up with a solo try from Johnson who threw a big dummy to create a hole in the Titans' defence then ran 60 metres for his ninth try of the season.
Bodene Thompson made a mockery of the Titans defence with the Warriors' fourth try soon after.
This was the Warriors fourth win in their last five games and during the Origin period they've gone from looking like a club in disarray, to one that are genuine contenders to make the top eight.
"It was a good win," coach Andrew McFadden said.Â
'What we've learnt in the last five weeks or so is that you've got to find different ways to win and we found a different way tonight.
"We were a touch flat early, but we built into the game and you've got to give credit to the opposition, they really turned up and they pushed us."
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