Alex Johnston is on track to break the NRL's try-scoring record this season but his four tries were not enough to prevent Ryan Papenhuyzen icing Melbourne's extra-time defeat of South Sydney.
Fullback Papenhuyzen sealed the Storm's 25-24 win with his second attempt at field goal in the 84th minute, booting the ball over from 20 metres out at Accor Stadium on Saturday night.
Latrell Mitchell had done his utmost to help Souths upset their visitors on return from NSW duty, including kicking to Tyrone Munro for the try that levelled the scores with only four minutes to play.
But Mitchell missed a potentially game-winning sideline conversion thereafter before his only field goal attempt sailed wide from 45 metres out.
The Storm moved to extra time, sealing victory and jumping the Warriors into third spot on the ladder.
Mitchell threw cut-out passes down the left side for Johnston's 203rd, 204th and 205th career tries.
Johnston then intercepted a Jahrome Hughes pass for his fourth try of the night, moving only six behind the benchmark of 212 that Ken Irvine set in 1973.
"I said to him at half-time, 'Have you got another try?' He said, 'I've got another couple in me'," Bennett said of Johnston, who scored his final three tries after the break.
"He's pretty pleased with himself and we are too."
The 30-year-old winger's hopes of reaching the record appeared in doubt when he went down with a serious Achilles injury late last season.
But Johnston has since scored 11 tries in seven games this year, and with nine more to play in the regular season, is well on track to reach 213 by finals.
He also became the first player to score four or more tries in a game against Melbourne since the perennially-successful Storm entered the competition in 1998.
The loss is Wayne Bennett's 15th in a row against rival coach Craig Bellamy and came in the pair's record-breaking 44th time coaching against one another.
Bennett has not beaten his former protege in any match since 2016, with Souths now in the midst of a four-game losing streak that ensures they will finish the weekend in the bottom four on the ladder.
"We fought right to the end there but fell short," said Souths back Jack Wighton.
"But there's still a lot of positives out of that game."
Melbourne scored in back-to-back sets to lead 12-0 after six minutes but invited Souths into the contest with errors, completing at only 68 per cent for the first half.
"We lost patience but having said that, you've got to give Souths a lot of credit for coming back," said Bellamy.
"I think we were really fortunate to get out of it at the end."
Melbourne looked ready to break their hosts' hearts as Sua Fa'alogo fielded a Mitchell bomb on the 20-metre line and tore away to put Tyran Wishart over as the last 10 minutes approached.
The Rabbitohs equalised when Mitchell dared to kick a long grubber through the line for Munro from 30 metres out on the third tackle.
But it was Papenhuyzen who had the last laugh.
