"Oh, what the …" But Ash Barnes didn't get the chance to finish the sentence.
Instead the Woden Valley Rams coach was too busy watching lock Jeff Morgan's kick. A kick made by the self-confessed banned kicker as the clock ran out.
Wodens Raine Spencer tries to out run Tuggeranongs Ben Nanesa.
Photo: Elesa Kurtz
Maybe Morgan's kicking status should change, as this one bounced perfectly for flying Rams winger Jessie Taws to score in the corner.
The Hail Mary play meant the Rams had knocked off the top-of-the-table Tuggeranong Bushrangers 20-18 at Phillip District on Saturday.
While the Bushrangers stayed top on points difference, it's created a logjam of six clubs trying to squeeze into the top four with the Rams sixth and two wins away.
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Morgan's kick capped a big afternoon for the forward. He also scored the try that sparked their second-half fightback for his first ever win over Tuggeranong.
"I'm not allowed to kick, I don't have my kicking licence. I just saw that one on the fly and thought I'd go with it. Nothing else to lose," he said.
"I saw [Taws] out of the corner of my eye the play before and I saw him on his bike before I got the ball so I thought I'd give it a go."
Barnes said it was a gutsy win, given they lost star half Lincoln Withers to a head knock in the opening exchanges, as well as Keb Vaetoe (shoulder) and Tom Hicks (concussion).
"I was in the midst of going, 'Oh, what the …' but for Jessie Taws to show the effort and never give up and sprint down there and put the ball down it's a testament to the character within the side that we have," he said.
The Bushrangers scored the opening two tries, through Nathan Smith and Livinai Tuicakau, before Woden centre Cleve McGhie made it 10-6 at half-time.
Then Morgan crossed after a massive linebreak, before Rams half Sean Maloney's show-and-go made it 16-12 with 13 minutes to go.
Tuggeranong looked to have sealed it when hooker Joshua Mitchell dove over, but Morgan's kick had other ideas.
"The effort I'm happy with, I just think towards the end maybe that last kick they put we relaxed a little bit and thought, 'I'd rather watch the ball go over the line than get to the ball'," Bushrangers coach Justin Giteau said.
"A disappointing way to lose, but full credit to the Rams, they played for 80 and got the result."
In the other games, Goulburn ended their winning drought beating Belconnen United 20-12, Yass knocked off the Queanbeyan Blues 14-10 and the Queanbeyan Kangaroos thrashed Gungahlin 42-6 to climb to third with back-to-back wins.
AT A GLANCE
Woden Valley Rams 20 (Jessie Taws, Cleve McGhie, Sean Maloney, Jeff Morgan tries; Ron Leapai) bt Tuggeranong Bushrangers 18 (Joshua Mitchell, Nathan Smith, Livinai Tuicakau tries; Mitchell 3 goals)
Goulburn Bulldogs 20 (Z Hart, T Greenwood, J Fattore tries; C Hart 4 goals) bt Belconnen United Sharks 12 (C McAskill, S Tupuola tries; A McDonald 2 goals)
Yass Magpies 14 (W Peace, J Smith tries; S Davis 3 goals) bt Queanbeyan Blues 10 (Z Patch, T Stevens tries; J Baker goal)
Queanbeyan Kangaroos 42 (B Cronan 3, J Kiely, N Ngere, F Tonga, R Tuckwell tries; B Crisp 7 goals) bt Gungahlin Bulls 6 (R Cronin try; J FaAmoe Ioane goal)
David Polkinghorne covers the Canberra Raiders, local rugby league, Canberra Cavalry, racing and cycling, along with every other sport, for The Canberra Times.
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