IT WAS 60 minutes in. The time Shawn Mackay would have run on in his No18 jersey, a replacement player full of energy and purpose.
The Brumbies were leading 12-7, but it was a precarious hold on the match.
Suddenly the rain that had gently soaked the Canberra Stadium turf for most of the game really started to teem down, sending spectators in the exposed seats rushing for cover.
This true downpour, so rare in Canberra these days, did something to the ACT Brumbies team, which had spent the previous five days lost in grief.
It gave the players a lift just as it seemed to bog down the Cape Town Stormers.
The Brumbies drove down into the Stormers half with a series of wickedly precise kicks from fullback Mark Gerrard. Each time the Stormers backs tried to gather the ball it would slip out of their hands inviting Brumbies players to pour on ahead.
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