The ACT Brumbies have survived a scare from their biggest rivals and some crazy Sydney weather to set the stage for a massive heritage clash at home next week.
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Prop Sefo Kautai dived over - an apt description given the swimming pool conditions that flooded the playing surface - in the closing stages to secure an eight-point win against the Waratahs.
The 29-21 result was lucky No. 13 in a row against the Waratahs and keeps the Brumbies in contention for a top two spot. They are on 39 points in third on the ladder - one point ahead of the fourth-placed Chiefs and four points behind the second-placed Hurricanes.
But the focus turns to a different New Zealand team this week. The Brumbies will host the Canterbury Crusaders in an afternoon battle that will double as a 20-year celebration since the teams met in the 2004 final.
It is hoped that a day-time game and the chance to reminisce about the glory years will bring fans out, and they'll be hoping they can avoid the wet that descended on Sydney's new $800 million venue.
Water started puddling on the field in the second half and players were sliding more than five metres at a time, occasionally disappearing behind the splashes.
It was described as "wet and wild", and in the end the Brumbies kept their cool despite the Waratahs charging back into the contest. The cut a 15-point margin to one before Kautai got across the line.
"It was chaos," grinned Brumbies halfback Ryan Lonergan when asked about the weather.
"They got the better of us in the contact areas in the first half, but glad we could finish that out. Happy to grind that one out."
Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham added: "Terrible conditions, there was really good scramble and determination. What it came down to was bobbled balls. Our defence was outstanding in those conditions."
READY FOR THE CRUSADE
Will the real ACT Brumbies please stand up? Because 11 games into the Super Rugby season, we're still trying to work out whether to party like it's 2004 or live in hope like the past 20 years.
On the surface, Brumbies fans have every reason to be confident their team can break a 15-year drought against the struggling Crusaders, and be a contender given they sit third on the ladder.
But the ups and downs have been a rollercoaster for fans. When the Brumbies are good, they're bloody good. When they're off their game, it threatens to be a disaster.
Luckily for them they survived the absolute torrential rain and wet and wild field conditions, and that should be reason enough to be optimistic.
Because the Crusaders await next. And despite the powerful franchise being on its knees after winning just two games in 2024, the Brumbies are haunted by the fact they haven't beaten their Kiwi rivals since 2009.
It sets the stage for a heritage party, with the heroes of 2004 to be at the ground to celebrate their 20-year championship reunion.
THE INJURY BLOW
Charlie Cale's hopes of forcing his way into the Wallabies squad will hinge on scans this week after the rookie back-rower joined a rotating injury list.
Cale scored the opener with some close-to-the-line smarts and then hobbled around the field for another 20 minutes before his night ended prematurely.
The 23-year-old is on the verge of signing a contract extension in Canberra and new Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt has been keeping a close eye on his development.
But an extended stint on the sideline will be a blow to the Brumbies' finals build up and Cale's individual ambitions of earning his first international call up.
It was unclear how Cale would fit into the back-row mix in Canberra this year, but his form has been so good he has kept Wallaby Tom Hooper either on the bench or out of the game-day squad.
If he has a syndesmosis problem, he could face a similar stint on the sidelines to Corey Toole, has been out for two weeks and is expected to miss at least one more.
The Brumbies were already without James Slipper, Blake Schoupp, Toole, Billy Pollard and Lachlan Lonergan, and they need fit bodies for the run to the play-offs.
It wasn't a happy night for the Waratahs on the injury front, either. Already decimated in the prop stocks and needing to call in a loan from the Melbourne Rebels to give them extra numbers, an emotional Harry Johnson-Holmes went down with a suspected Achilles problem.
HOW IT WENT DOWN
The first try came after the Brumbies pounded the Waratahs' line for more than five minutes before Cale spotted a gap and dived over.
What followed couldn't have been more stark to the opening exchanges.
The Waratahs completely controlled the game for the next 20 minutes, sending the Brumbies backwards even when they didn't have the ball.
They scored one try to level the game but bombing another three that would have seen them go well ahead.
Instead of holding a comfortable buffer at half-time, the Waratahs found themselves trailing by three points after Ryan Lonergan slotted a penalty to wrestle back a slight advantage.
Half-time gave the Brumbies a chance to reassess, and they didn't waste any time after the break. Rob Valetini scored within minutes of returning to the field and, despite the Waratahs' dominance, it was the Brumbies with a 17-7 lead.
The heavens opened up and so did the Waratahs as Len Ikitau crossed soon after and all of a sudden it was a 15-point margin.
But just as it looked as though the Brumbies were cruising, Joey Walton pounced on a mistake and kicked through in the wet to cut the margin back to eight points.
The field looked more like an Olympic swimming event as water pooled on the surface and errors crept in.
The Waratahs had won just two games this season, but found a way to take control of the game again and keep their shock finals hopes alive.
Referee Ben O'Keefe had a shocker in the wet, too. First he incorrectly penalised Rob Valetini at the breakdown, then missed a clear knock on in the midfield before the Waratahs scored when Tane Edmed crossed and the lead up play wasn't checked for a possible knock on.
All of a sudden the margin was one point with water everywhere on the surface, but the Brumbies kept their cool and Kautai went over from close range to end the Waratahs' comeback hopes.
AT A GLANCE
ACT BRUMBIES 29 (Charlie Cale, Rob Valetini, Len Ikitau, Sefo Kautai tries; Ryan Lonergan 2, Jack Debreczeni conversions; Ryan Lonergan penalty) bt NSW WARATAHS 21 (Jake Gordon, Joey Walton, Tane Edmed tries; Will Harrison 2, Tane Edmed conversions) at Sydney. Referee: Ben O'Keefe.