The ACT Brumbies came out with a point to prove and dished out some serious punishment on the NSW Waratahs.
They were massive in the second half as they raced away for a 40-17 win in Canberra to keep their minor premiership hopes alive.
Watch every game of SMARTECH Super Rugby Pacific live and on-demand via Stan Sport.
So what did we learn?
The ACT Brumbies are back in the hunt for a crucial top two spot and even the minor premiership.
The Chiefs’ loss was massive for their chances, and they took it with a big win over the NSW Waratahs to reduce the gap to three.
Next week’s match between the Crusaders and Chiefs is massive for the race, opening the door for the Brumbies to climb into the top two should they defeat the Force away from home.
From there, there’s a big Oz derby against the Reds before the final match against the Crusaders is looming more and more like a top two decider.
The NSW Waratahs fought their way back into the game but will lament a second half fadeout.
As captain Jake Gordon said, there was plenty of confidence in the sheds at half-time as they were only down by seven points.
Unfortunately, another flat 10-15 minute period allowed the Brumbies to kick clear and secure the win.
They return home for another derby game against the Queensland Reds, which is must-win territory.
Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii was built for the big stage and was one of few bright spots for the Waratahs.
He was bumping off fellow Wallabies, creating magic out of nothing and sparked the Waratahs throughout the first half.
The line he ran for the second try was one Rob Valetini would’ve been proud of.
The fullback demanded the ball and lit up the Brumbies defence.
Tom Wright may be having the best season by an outside back without a try.
He tore apart the Waratahs in the second half with his distribution and had the ball on a string.
His combination with Corey Toole was electric all night as they found space repeatedly.
Wright finished the night with four line breaks and nine tackle busts.
The dominance of the Brumbies maul had the Waratahs all at sea for different reasons than usual.
Such is the strength of their maul, you have to commit mass numbers to shutting it down and the hosts exposed the space left as a result.
The set play to set up Corey Toole’s opener was picture perfect as Noah Lolesio delivered a beauty.
Billy Pollard then put them in front when he timed the moment when the visitors committed to sneak into the space left around the ruck for the try.
It was a taste of Dan McKellar’s own medicine after building the Brumbies’ maul up to what it is today.
