Pedro Rolando double sees Royals prevail in a John I Dent Cup thriller

The Canberra Royals half scored a double to lift his side to a thrilling 26-24 win over the Uni-Norths Owls in the John I Dent Cup's top of the table clash at Phillip Oval on Saturday.

Rolando converted his own try in the 74^th minute and the two-point buffer would prove the difference in front of a raucous home crowd.

Wearing the No. 21 jumper, Rolando darted over from close range to give the home side the ascendancy after the two premiership contenders traded tries from the onset.

The hosts repelled the Owls' last-ditch bid to hit the front, maintaining their undefeated start to the season as they emerge as the team to beat.

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"He's done it for so long, it's not like he's just had one season where he has been outstanding," Royals veteran Johnston said.

"Since he's arrived at Royals, every year he is always up there in terms of the MacDougall Medal. He's a class player and he comes up with big plays. He can just come up with big plays constantly which is unreal for us.

"It's a real beauty for us to have someone of his calibre coming off the bench. He brings a lot of energy and he's all class. To be able to have him off the bench to finish for us was very nice."

There are so many elements to the Royals' turnaround. They are unbeaten after four rounds this year, reversing the results of a winless campaign in 2021.

Among them are Rolando and James Bodman who have returned from major injuries. There's Johnston who has put off retirement for one more year, again, and a new mentor in Butt.

"It's been really good. Obviously we've got a new head coach. We've all known Buttsy for a long time at the club and it's great to have him back," Johnston said.

"He's brought a different energy, a different voice. Obviously [Wayne Southwell] is one of the greatest coaches to have coached in Canberra. He was at Royals for a long time and we appreciate everything Southy did for us, but sometimes change is as good as a holiday.

"Buttsy has come in and set some new standards around different things and the boys have really responded to that. Trainings have been quite tough but what he asks of us is what has put us in good stead for these first four rounds."

AT A GLANCE

John I Dent Cup round four: CANBERRA ROYALS 26 (Pedro Rolando 2, Lincoln Smith, Allan Wratten tries; Rolando 2, Thomas Hallam conversions) bt UNI-NORTHS OWLS 24 (Max Bode, Charlie Cale, Samuel Thomas, NA tries; George Hewitt 2 conversions) at Phillip Oval.

TUGGERANONG VIKINGS 18 (Jake Simeon, James Douglas tries; Jack Evenden conversion; Evenden 2 penalties) bt QUEANBEYAN WHITES 13 (Penalty try; Nathan Carroll 2 penalties) at Campese Field.

WESTS LIONS 29 (Mowgli Cameron, Lachie Albert, Deon Evans-Ao, NA tries; Declan Meredith 3 conversions; Meredith penalty) bt GUNGAHLIN EAGLES 19 (Isaac Crowe, Ryan Grocott, Thomas Ciot tries; Connor Rous 2 conversions) at Gungahlin Enclosed Oval.

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