It was a game that had it all and then some, with the Queensland Reds somehow coming away with the 34-31 win over the ACT Brumbies.
The win ends their drought in Canberra and the Brumbies' unbeaten start to the season, with a returning Wallaby the hero of the night.
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So what did we learn?
Carter Gordon, welcome home.
The Reds flyhalf stepped up when it mattered, slicing past his opposite number for the winner when the Reds needed it the most.
Gordon will get the limelight but Jock Campbell is the real star of the comeback, producing a sensational run from well inside the 22 to give the Reds a sniff.
Luck went their way, but sometimes, that’s all a team needs to really kick-start their season.
A win over the Brumbies has alluded Les Kiss for so long, giving them belief before next week's return fixture against the NSW Waratahs.
It’s a tough way for the Brumbies’ unbeaten start to end, copping the uno reverse card with the late comeback loss.
Coach Stephen Larkham will be furious that the referees missed a clear knock-on from Filipo Daugunu that should’ve given them a free kick to seal the game.
They got some great impact from their bench via Luke Reimer and Blake Schoupp; however, they just couldn’t hold them out late.
But the Brumbies will have to park the emotion ahead of a tough away trip to Fiji to face the Drua.
Any drought-affected areas in Australia should be on the phone to the Queensland Reds because wet weather seems to follow them around the country.
The Brumbies and Reds were forced to wait in the change rooms as lightning cracked the top of GIO Stadium in a mini storm that swept through Canberra.
This pushed the kick-off well past the scheduled time of 7:35 pm, leaving the two teams to recalibrate their preparations until the game could actually get underway at 9:00 pm.
Fortunately, there were a host of players on either side with experience on how to pass the time after last year’s third British & Irish Lions Test in Sydney, with James Slipper basically asleep in the dressing rooms.
The match was billed as a battle of the number eights between Charlie Cale and Harry Wilson, and we got that and some.
The first half was a display of both back-rowers unique athleticism as they went try-for-try.
For Wilson, it’s the deft hands and ball-playing that defies his size, having a hand in two tries. Not to be outdone, Cale’s freakish speed and strength saw him bag his own double to keep the Brumbies in the hunt.
It’s an awesome problem to have for Test selectors.
It happened far earlier than expected but the battle of Kadin v Treyvon Pritchard was something that caught the eye throughout the match.
An arm/shoulder injury to Lachie Anderson saw the younger Pritchard thrown into the contest way earlier than expected, finding his brother in the 31st minute with a solid tackle.
His brother gave it back to him when he was bundled into touch, giving him a ruffle up on the ground.
18-year-old Treyvon showed enough to say he belongs at Super Rugby level, nearly pulling off the winner.
