The upsets continue to baffle experts and punters alike. The Tigers ventured across the ditch without star five-eighth Jarome Luai and managed to topple the unbeaten Warriors. The unbeaten Bulldogs hosted the vastly depleted Knights and were soundly beaten, and the Storm travelled to Townsville to lose a second consecutive game, to the previously unimpressive Cowboys.
Here's whose stocks are up and down after Round 4.
Our footy experts cast their eye over the week's action to find out whose stocks are up -- whether it's a coaching masterstroke or a player having a blinder -- and whose are down.
Brisbane Broncos
Stocks up: After a sluggish start, Brisbane are firing again and while it's easy to focus on the brilliance of Reece Walsh and their lightning-quick outside backs (and rightfully so), the performance of a Payne Haas-less forward pack on Friday night is what will give Michael Maguire the most cause for delight. All five of Corey Jensen, Xavier Willison, Jordan Riki, Brendan Piakura and Patrick Carrigan cracked 100 metres for the game, with some great bench cameo from Ben Talty as well.
Stocks down: Walsh is shining but Ezra Mam's tough start to the season continues. The five-eighth was so important down the stretch for them last year but his decision making (especially that intercept for the Averillo try) and defence (although he did save a try with a great ankle tap) have just not been at the level he needs them to be at in the first month of 2026. Still, plenty of time to figure it out.
- Matt Bungard
Canberra Raiders
Stocks up: Xavier Savage is legitimately one of the best players in football to watch when he gets into space, and right now this team's ability to create chances out of nothing is commendable. Despite the slow start the passion is still there for Ricky Stuart's men, but the execution is letting them down. Oh, and shoutout Simi Sasagi who looks like he's played centre all his life.
Stocks down: Make no mistake, Canberra absolutely blew this game on Sunday -- they made enough breaks and had enough half-chances to outscore their opponents but couldn't find any semblance of organisation or leadership when it got to the attacking 20. Even the tries they did score were mostly due to individual acts of brilliance rather than great team footy. Three losses in a row, and suddenly all those people who said the Raiders would regress this year are feeling pretty smug.
- Matt Bungard
Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs
Stocks up: Matt Burton had another great game for the Bulldogs, despite the confusion over where he is best positioned. He scored two tries, the second a hard-running solo effort showing plenty of determination. He proved to be a danger every time he handled the ball and also caused havoc for the Knights' back three with more spiral bombs than he has put up all year.
Stocks down: Something has to change at the Bulldogs. If they keep playing this ordinary attacking football, they'll be lucky to make the finals this year. Cameron Ciraldo has to work out what he's trying to do with the Bulldogs playmakers. Against the Knights they had Jaeman Salmon, Lachlan Galvin, Matt Burton, Stephen Crichton, Bailey Hayward, Kurt Mann and Sean O'Sullivan all having turns at ball playing from the first or second receiver position. If Galvin is not working at halfback, find someone who will and put him in from the start.
- Darren Arthur
Cronulla Sharks
Stocks up: A much-needed bounce back win after a shock loss at home, and it's the manner of victory that should please Sharks fans. Yes, Canberra made a lot of errors but they still pulled the game back to an even keel on multiple occasions, only for Cronulla to skip away once again. The desperation in the last 10 minutes was plain to see and being 2-2 instead of 1-3 will make a world of difference to their confidence.
Stocks down: Sharks fans have been desperate for the rest of their middle forwards, or at least one of them, to be able to go with Addin Fonua-Blake when he's trucking it up the guts with ease as he did in this one. It's a tall ask, sure, and while AFB was back to his best today it wasn't a great showing from the rest of the middles, particularly in the second half when they were on the back foot for most of it. Canberra are one of the toughest packs to come up against, so it's not particularly shocking, but they simply need more from the engine room going forward.
- Matt Bungard
Dolphins
Stocks up: A tough loss to take but Kulikefu Finefeuiaki turned in yet another excellent performance. The Tongan international has been close to the best backrower in the competition so far in 2026, and is vindicating anyone who had him as a breakout candidate to go to the next level in his fourth season in the NRL.
Stocks down: The Brisbane Derby is getting worryingly one-sided. It's now 6-1 in favour of big brother, and for all the offloads and big plays the Dolphins made in this game, they had no end product to show for it. The Broncos scrambled well but the execution just wasn't there for a Dolphins team that made well over 2000 metres as a team, and only finished with two tries, one of which was an intercept.
- Matt Bungard
Gold Coast Titans
Stocks up: This was a much-needed breakthrough. A 22-14 win to secure their first victory of the season, and it came through effort and resilience more than anything else. After an 0-3 start, there was clear urgency in their performance. They controlled key moments better, held onto their momentum, and didn't let the game slip -- something that had cost them in earlier rounds.
Stocks down: The Titans still lack polish. There were periods where they allowed the Dragons back into the contest, and against stronger opposition, that will be costly.
- Isaac Issa
Manly Sea Eagles
Stocks up: On tackle two of the game, the Sea Eagles caught the Roosters napping, spreading it wide to set Jason Saab free down the right touchline. Saab was able to draw James Tedesco and send Tom Trbojevic to score under the posts. Still in the first half, Tolutau Koula cut through the Roosters defence for another long-range try, beating Tedesco with a step on the way. In the second half it was Trbojevic backing up to finish another long range classic. The Sea Eagles are certainly entertaining.
Stocks down: Three games into a two year extension, he said. Everyone is turning up and working hard, he said. His future at the club was not up to him, he said. Within 24 hours of their loss to the Roosters at Brookvale, Manly coach Anthony Seibold was unemployed. It's a brutal business coaching an NRL team. Will Kieren Foran be able to work miracles and turn their season around? Stay tuned.
- Darren Arthur
Melbourne Storm
Stocks up: It's back-to-back losses, and the bloke who scored four tries has already announced he's leaving next year, and the defence is quite porous on both sides of the field ... but did you see that pass from Harry Grant? What in the 2003 Luke Priddis was that? An absolutely unbelievable play that we'll see on highlight reels for years and years to come.
Stocks down: How often does something have to happen for commentators to christen it 'un-Stormlike'? Because that's a favourite turn of phrase whenever Melbourne do anything bad, but is their inability to close out games really 'Un-Stormlike' at this point? A great stat from my old colleague Aaron Wallace shows that Saturday night was the sixth time since the start of 2025 that the Storm have blown a game in which they led by double digits. Their left edge defence, in particular, looks like swiss cheese at the moment.
- Matt Bungard
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Newcastle Knights
Stocks up: There is an old truism that says; "you can't coach speed" and in Dom Young, the Knights have pace to burn on the right wing. Young scored three tries, running past Connor Tracey like he was standing still on two occasions, and running 80 metres after an intercept for his other four-pointer. Jacob Saifiti was a standout in the middle for the Knights, but Young made sure his forward domination wasn't wasted.
Stocks down: Fletcher Sharpe was supposed to make his return from a minor knee injury last week, but dropped out of the side late, as he wasn't quite right. He had a solid game against the Bulldogs in what was a brilliant team effort. Unfortunately he twisted the same knee late in the game and seemed to be in a lot of discomfort.
- Darren Arthur
New Zealand Warriors
Stocks up: There were moments, particularly through Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, where they looked capable of breaking the game open, but those periods were too brief to shift momentum.
Stocks down: This was a worrying performance at home. Conceding 32 points and allowing the Tigers to dictate terms highlights defensive lapses and a lack of control through the middle. Once they fell behind, they struggled to wrestle momentum back, and that inability to respond mid-game is a concern.
- Isaac Issa
North Queensland Cowboys
Stocks up: A week ago, Todd Payten's seat was hotter than the surface of the sun. It was a popular either/or on podcasts or in other footy talking spaces to debate who was going to last longer; the Cowboys coach, who has now won twice in seven days, or Anthony Seibold. Anyone on the latter's side is feeling pretty foolish right about now. In terms of the on-field product, although the Storm did score a lot of points, there was some absolutely heroic defending at times from a Cowboys team showing so much more heart recently than we saw at Leichhardt against the Tigers in round two.
Stocks down: It's not a coincidence that the Cowboys got off to a hot start and came home with a wet sail - Jason Taumalolo is playing astonishingly well given his age and the amount of miles on the odometer. The starting forwards for North Queensland as a whole were a lot better this week, but they're still getting very little from the bench rotation, they need to fix that up if this good run of form is to continue.
- Matt Bungard
Parramatta Eels
Stocks up: There were patches where Parramatta showed attacking intent, scoring four tries against a top-tier defence, which isn't easy. They can take solace in the fact that they scored the most points against Penrith this year so far.
Stocks down: Defensively, they were exposed. Conceding 48 points points to structural issues, particularly when defending repeat pressure. Once Penrith built momentum, the Eels had no answers, and that gap between their best and worst football was clear. Against the competition's elite, that level simply isn't sustainable.
- Isaac Issa
Penrith Panthers
Stocks up: This was a statement. A 48-20 win in a rivalry clash, built on relentless pressure and attacking precision, reinforced Penrith's status as the benchmark. They scored eight tries and consistently broke down Parramatta through both the middle and the edges. What separates Penrith is their ability to turn momentum into points - once they get on top, they don't let teams back in. It wasn't just dominance, it was control.
Stocks down: Very little. If anything, there were brief defensive lapses, but they were quickly corrected, which is what elite teams do. Ivan Cleary touched on the lapses post-game, admitting the side needs to tidy up those moments moving forward.
- Isaac Issa
St George Illawarra Dragons
Stocks up: There were glimpses, particularly in attack, that suggest this side can compete when they find rhythm. St George's ability to pester sides and remain relentless at times will be a boon once they figure out how to maintain it.
Stocks down: Four rounds in, they're still searching for consistency. Another loss, and now 0-4, indicates some ongoing issues with execution and discipline in key moments. They've shown enough to stay in games, but not enough to win them, and that's the difference right now.
- Isaac Issa
South Sydney Rabbitohs
BYE
Sydney Roosters
Stocks up: The Roosters were able to overcome the early Sea Eagles try and battle their way back into the contest, before skipping away with three quick tries in the second half. It had to be expected that Daly Cherry-Evans would shine on his return to Brookvale, but his leading role in the victory went beyond expectations. DCE had a hand in each of the six Roosters tries in what was easily his best performance so far for his new club.
Stocks down: While they would have been happy with the win and their attacking prowess, the Roosters will know their defence still needs a lot of work. Following on from being hammered by the Panthers, they backed up to leak three long-range tries against the Sea Eagles. They did manage some effective scrambling defence for large parts of the game, but Trent Robinson will want them to work on their intensity and focus no matter where on the field they are defending.
- Darren Arthur
Wests Tigers
Stocks up: This felt like a genuine step forward. A 32-14 win away from home, with six different try scorers, showed a side playing with confidence and cohesion. They didn't just capitalise on opportunities, they created them through sustained pressure, winning the ruck and forcing the Warriors into errors.
Stocks down: The emergence of Jock Madden has added further question marks around the Tigers' best possible halves pairing once everyone is healthy. Jarome Luai will still be out for another few weeks, which could fan the flames even further.
- Isaac Issa
