Woden Valley Rams snatched a thrilling 24-22 victory from injury-riddled Tuggeranong, denying the Bushrangers an inspiring comeback after being down 24 points at half-time.
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The Rams didn't skip a beat in the first 40 minutes of the southside derby, as they scored four unanswered tries at Greenway on Saturday.
Woden looked set to run away with it until Tuggeranong kicked into gear in the second half, scoring four tries of their own, with one failed conversion leaving them two points back.
In the dying seconds of the game the Bushrangers threatened a miracle comeback only for their winger to be tackled just short of the try-line, sealing Woden's victory.
"It's what we've been doing this year - we haven't played a full 80 minutes all year," Tuggeranong coach Jason Kelly said.
"It was a prime example again. First half we were rubbish and in the second half we were fantastic, but we left our run slightly too late.
"We need to start playing for 80 minutes instead of 40, then we might get the results."
Tuggeranong were missing a number of starters due to injury and their bad luck continued on Saturday, with front-rower Darby Medlyn going down with a head knock.
"We lost our leader Darby in the early part of the game, and he's the heart and soul of the club," Kelly said. "It was always going to take a big effort to win without him."
Former Manly Sea Eagle Zac Saddler had a strong return from his 80-minute stint in France and was instrumental in Tuggeranong fightback, setting up a second half try.
"I thought he was fantastic and that's what you get week in week out with a bloke like that. There's no surprises there," Kelly said.
"He was enormous for us today, he'd be our man of the match."
Next week Tuggeranong will look to get into the winner's circle when they face the Queanbeyan Blues, while Woden Valley will host Yass Magpies in round 10.
Canberra Raiders Cup - Round 9
Woden Valley Rams 24 bt Tuggeranong Bushrangers 22
Queanbeyan Kangaroos 34 bt Queanbeyan Blues 10
Goulburn City Bulldogs 18 bt Yass Magpies 12
Belconnen Sharks 26 bt West Belconnen Warriors 10
Katrina Fanning Shield - Round 6
Woden Valley Rams 30 bt Tuggeranong Bushrangers 22
Queanbeyan Blues 82 bt Queanbeyan Kangaroos 0
Yass Magpies 50 bt Goulburn City Bulldogs 0
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