John I Dent Cup Rugby: Queanbeyan Whites end Uni-Norths Owls' season in extra-time

But a clutch penalty goal from Queanbeyan Whites fullback Nathan Carroll sealed an unforgettable 48-45 extra-time victory over the Uni-Norths Owls on Sunday.

Now the Whites are just one win away from playing in the John I Dent Cup grand final.

After full-time nothing could separate the two teams at Viking Park, the scoreboard reading 38-38.

In an eerie coincidence, it was the identical final score between the Royals and Tuggeranong a day earlier in their 100-minute epic qualifying final.

Like the Royals, the Owls knew they could advance with a draw, having finished the regular season a spot above the Whites.

With both teams scoring tries in each half of extra-time, it took some individual brilliance to break the 45-all deadlock.

Queanbeyan spoiled the party thanks to the calm and collected goal-kicking of Carroll, who nailed the decisive points as the final minutes of extra-time expired, in addition to scoring two tries on the day.

"That's Nate Carroll. He's probably in the top handful of players in the whole competition and deserves a professional contract somewhere," Whites coach Sam French said post-game.

"It's unbelievable that finish. It was a weird feeling on the sideline.

"There's nothing I could do about it in that moment, so I was just hoping the boys could finish the job."

Brumbies centre Hudson Creighton also had an important impact for the Whites against Uni-Norths, scoring a double that included one in extra-time.

Queanbeyan will now line up against Tuggeranong next Saturday with a place in the grand final on the line.

"I was watching that Royals-Vikings game and I was licking my lips thinking, 'If we got through this week they'd have some sore bodies'. And now we're in the same boat," French said.

"We'll do more of the same next week really. There's nothing fancy about what we do - we're just going to outmuscle them, and we're going to take their set piece on.

"We've had three really tight games this year - they've beaten us twice and we got up last time - so it'll be a challenge but one that we've been looking forward to. This is massive for the club after a few lean years."

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Queanbeyan will have the wind in its sails coming off the win heading into the Vikings clash, and will be looking to continue the free-flowing, entertaining brand of rugby it displayed on Sunday.

The Owls could just as easily have walked away the victors, several highlight-worthy plays exciting the solid crowd in attendance.

Blow for blow, six first-half tries saw the teams level at 21-21 going into the second term. And it was more of the same for the remainder of the match, right till the very last seconds when Carroll sealed the result.

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