Queensland Reds snapped a six-game Super Rugby losing streak with a stirring 18-17 victory over the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein.
Capping off their two-week tour of South Africa in style, the Reds clawed back from 10-0 down to twice take the lead in a see-sawing second half and earn just their second win of the season on Sunday morning (AEST).
James O’Connor sparked the comeback in his first game back from a niggling calf injury, playing his best game for the franchise.
Setting up Adam Korczyk and then Samu Kerevi for tries just after the half-time break, the former Wallabies livewire appeared to have set the Reds on course for a drought-breaking result.
The Cheetahs responded with an excellent driving maul teeing up Boom Prinsloo to score and reclaim the ascendancy for the home side with 20 minutes to go.
But a drop goal to makeshift flyhalf Nick Frisby gave the Reds a slender one-point lead, which they managed to hold during a dramatic final few minutes.
Joe Pietersen had the chance to score what would have been the match-winning penalty with seconds remaining but his attempt thudded into the post.
The final whistle would have come as sweet relief for embattled coach Richard Graham, who is in a scrap to save his job following a woeful start to the year.
The Western Force, on the other hand, came within centimetres of ending their own losing run, but in the end it was to no avail as the Stormers secured a 13-6 win in Saturday night’s Super Rugby clash at nib Stadium.
The Force appeared destined to crash to their eighth straight loss when the Stormers opened up a seven-point lead in the 76th minute and Kyle Godwin was sent to the sin bin.
But the Perth-based franchise unleashed a series of frenetic attacks at the death, with fullback Dane Haylett-Petty held up over the line in the 82nd minute to deny the Force the chance to draw the game.
The defeat was a cruel blow to the Force, who dominated for most of the match and deserved to come away with the win – or a draw at the very least.
Should the Force lose to the Chiefs in New Zealand next Friday, it will equal the franchise’s longest ever losing run of nine set back in their debut season of 2006.
The Stormers were awarded a penalty try in the 10th minute courtesy of their powerful scrum, helping the visitors open up a 10-6 lead by half-time.
The Force unleashed wave after wave of attack in the second half, but they couldn’t find their way to the tryline.
Sometimes it was the Stormers’ steely defence standing in their way. On other occasions, the Force were their own worst enemy – either failing to offload when they should, or offloading when the pass wasn’t on.
The Stormers were holding on for dear life on numerous occasions. But when they nailed a penalty against the run of play in the 76th minute and Godwin was sent to the bin, it looked as though another game would slip through the Force’s fingers.
That would prove to be the case, but not before the home side unleashed a series of frenetic attacking thrusts in the dying minutes.
Haylett-Petty did his best to ground the ball when he barged over the line, but a host of Stormers’ bodies meant it was impossible for the TMO to award the try despite the celebrations of Force hooker Heath Tessmann.
Elsewhere, the Melbourne Rebels registered their first Super Rugby win in Canberra, beating a decimated Brumbies 13-8.
Despite the rain and hostile 7,531 fans, the Rebels dominated proceedings at GIO Stadium for their second away victory this season.
For the Brumbies, the loss was their third in four matches.
While they remain Australian conference leaders, the NSW Waratahs are hot on their tails after their bonus-point victory over the ladder-leading Hurricanes in Wellington earlier in the day.
With injuries forcing more than a dozen changes to their line-up, the Brumbies struggled against an organised Rebels outfit.
The visitors played to the wet weather, keeping the hosts pinned in their own half and being resolute in defence.
They were first to get on the board, with Matt Harris scraping home a penalty goal almost 10 minutes in.
Their 3-0 lead blew out to 10-0 moments later after Nick Stirzaker sliced through from a scrum and got a wide ball out to Sefanaia Naivalu who crossed.
It ended an impressive streak for the Brumbies, who had scored the first try in all previous nine matches between the two sides.
The momentum continued Melbourne’s way, the visitors awarded seven penalties to two in the opening half; the Brumbies had to wait nearly 32 minutes for their first.
The Rebels were headed towards their second-ever first-half cleansheet in five seasons, until Henry Speight spoiled it after the siren.
The outside centre dived over in the corner for his first five-pointer in 2015 on the back of some quick hands to head into the break 13-5 down after Christian Lealiifano’s conversion was slapped down.
Lealiifano went on to add three points via a 63rd-minute penalty goal to reduce the deficit to 13-8, which remained unchanged.
To add to the Brumbies’ injury woes, a bloody-nosed Lausil Taliauli was taken off with apparent concussion 30 minutes into his first Super Rugby start and replaced by debutant Rodney Iona.
In Dunedin, a brutally efficient first half has set up the Highlanders for a 30-24 Super Rugby win over the Blues at Forsyth Barr Stadium.
The Blues, coming off their first win of the season over the Brumbies last week, scrabbled for possession and territory as the Highlanders ran in three tries and took a 24-0 lead into halftime.
The Aucklanders lifted to win the second half 24-6, scoring four tries, including a brace for Keven Mealamu.
But Lima Sopoaga’s accurate boot was the Highlanders’ winning edge, and the fly-half added 15 points with three conversions and three penalties.
Missed tackles cost the Blues dearly early on, and were compounded by handling errors and poor decisions when they managed to secure possession.
Explosive Highlanders centre Malakai Fekitoa collected two tries. The first was after just 10 minutes when he and winger Waisake Naholo combined down the right.
Naholo featured again five minutes later, crashing over in the tackle for his own try to give the Highlanders a 17-0 lead after 18 minutes.
The home team wrapped up a dominant first half with a third try three minutes from the break.
Halfback Aaron Smith set it up with a quick tap from a scrum penalty before Fekitoa’s swerve and quick feet left the Blues defence flat-footed.
The Blues stormed back in the second half. Inside centre George Moala dotted down less than two minutes after the restart and lock Patrick Tuipulotu powered more than five minutes later.
The Highlanders were reduced to 14 men as the hour mark approached, after lock Joe Wheeler was binned for a dangerous tackle on Blues skipper Jerome Kaino.
The Blues capitalised almost immediately. Replacement hooker Keven Mealamu slipped through for the first of his two tries, and the second came just three minutes from fulltime to secure a second consolation bonus point.
Earlier, the NSW Waratahs revived their Super Rugby title defence with a spirited bonus-point win over the top-of-the-table Hurricanes in Wellington.
The Waratahs ran in four tries to end the Hurricanes’ unbeaten start to the season in a confident 29-24 display at the Cake Tin.
The victory lifted the titleholders back into the top six before their crucial Australian conference clashes against the Melbourne Rebels and Brumbies.
Opting for six forwards on the bench, NSW coach Michael Cheika got full value from his reserves as the Waratahs took command in the second half after the sides went to the interval locked at 19-19.
Star fullback Israel Folau’s 52nd-minute strike, followed by Bernard Foley’s conversion and a penalty goal gave the Waratahs a 10-point buffer.
But they had to hang over during a tense final 10 minutes following a soft try to Hurricanes livewire TJ Perenara.
In a seesawing first half, the Waratahs led, trailed and drew level after the siren sounded when winger Peter Betham grabbed his second try of the game.
Proving a worthy fill-in for Taqele Naiyaravoro, who was grounded in Sydney because of visa restrictions, Betham snapped up an errant, no-look pass from Beauden Barrett to score under the posts.
He also grabbed the opening try of the match in the 14th minute before the Hurricanes struck back with two tries in three minutes through Conrad Smith and Barrett, then edged in front just after the half-hour mark with another five-pointer to Brad Shields.
But the Waratahs were not to be denied, leaving the Hurricanes to settle for two consolation bonus points for bagging four tries and losing by less than eight points.
It was enough for the Wellington outfit to climb back above the Chiefs to top spot on the ladder at the halfway point of the competition.
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