The Panthers caused a boilover against the Roosters to make it three wins in a row, after the Titans sprung an upset against the Broncos in their Queensland derby.

Panthers post upset win over Roosters

James Maloney staked a claim for a State of Origin recall after engineering Penrith to a desperate 19-10 upset of a depleted Sydney Roosters.

Just days after New South Wales lost the Origin series opener without him, Maloney set up all three of the Panthers' tries on Sunday in a vintage display.

Last year's Blues five-eighth might come into calculations for Origin II in Perth, as coach Brad Fittler searches for ways to send the series to a decider.

And the 32-year-old reminded selectors of his worth with a man-of-the-match effort alongside Blues number seven Nathan Cleary in a gritty win.

He iced his performance, which included a critical 40-20, with a late field goal.

The Roosters were in the contest for the opening hour despite being without Latrell Mitchell, Angus Crichton, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Luke Keary.

But, with his team holding a delicate two-point lead with 20 minutes remaining, Maloney grubbered on a dime for rookie Brent Naden to claim a crucial try.

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The defeat for the defending premiers was their third in succession — their longest losing streak in three years — although they remain in third spot.

Playing in front of their biggest crowd of the year, the Panthers flew off the blocks when Maloney put a barnstorming Viliame Kikau over in the second minute.

They should have doubled the advantage when Dylan Edwards broke into the backfield, but threw his pass forward to a supporting Cleary.

A signature Daniel Tupou try in the corner reduced the deficit to two points at half-time.

The match turned when Joseph Manu was sin-binned for a professional foul in the 48th minute, and Kikau crossed for his second not long after.

Despite being down a man, the Roosters responded through Victor Radley.

But Maloney sealed the win with a field goal in the closing stages, and the Panthers held on for their third-straight victory.

Embattled Titans defeat Broncos

Tyrone Roberts (centre) celebrates his try with his Titans teammates. ( AAP: Dave Hunt )

Gold Coast put its off-field woes to one side to claim an impressive 26-18 win over Queensland rivals Brisbane at Lang Park.

The Titans headed to Brisbane with star half-back Ash Taylor unavailable because of personal issues, recruit Tyrone Peachey reportedly seeking a move back to Penrith and coach Garth Brennan facing speculation over his immediate future.

In reply, they belted an undermanned Broncos line-up in front of 30,048 spectators.

Centre Brian Kelly nabbed a double for the visitors while captain Tyrone Roberts was sensational, scoring 14 points including a solo try in the first half.

Impressive youngster Jake Turpin scored the Broncos' only try of the first half, as Brisbane — playing without State of Origin representatives Joe Ofahengaue, Corey Oates or Matt Gillett — slumped to just its second defeat in its past six matches.

Broncos coach Anthony Seibold is also facing a headache in his halves with young half-back Tom Dearden injuring his ankle in the opening five minutes of the match.

Dearden failed to return and would undergo scans on Monday to determine the extent of his injury.

The Titans made light of their underdog status by charging to a 12-0 lead early in the half, including a special effort by Roberts where he dummied past Broncos' New South Wales Origin representative Payne Haas and left Darius Boyd on his knees before scoring.

Turpin replied for the Broncos shortly after he had won possession with a big hit on Keegan Hipgrave, but a try in the final minute of the half to Anthony Don gave the Titans an 18-6 lead at the break.

A pair of penalty goals and Kelly's second try extended that lead to 26-6 before late four-pointers to Kotoni Staggs and Anthony Milford added some gloss to the scoreline for the home team.

The Titans face a short turnaround before hosting the Warriors on Friday night, while the Broncos are away on Saturday against Parramatta.

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