It's the kind of kick you either dread or dream of. You're in an elimination semi-final against your former team, with the chance to end their season and keep your own grand final dream alive.
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If you were wondering whether Belconnen United Sharks halfback Jack Beagley was dreading or dreaming, just ask his teammate and coach Zac Patch - whose heart rate might have lifted the roof off the Raiders Club at Kippax Oval on Sunday afternoon.
"You know the funny thing, mate, I had no doubt whatsoever," Patch said.
A 79th-minute conversion from Beagley has secured a 30-28 win over West Belconnen in the Canberra Raiders Cup minor semi-final.
The Sharks will spend their Sunday scouting an opponent for next week's preliminary final. The Warriors will spend their Sunday getting silly.
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"Those Westies blokes have been into Beags each game we've played there because he obviously played at Westies a little while ago. He's silenced them every time and he definitely did that today with a kick to finish it," Patch said.
"He was cool under pressure. We definitely heard the Sharkies supporters a bit louder than Westies when that happened."
Their eyes now turn to Sunday's major semi-final at Freebody Oval, where the Sam Williams-led Queanbeyan Kangaroos face the Tuggeranong Bushrangers, who stand as the only team to have beaten the minor premiers this year.
The winner of that clash heads straight into the grand final at Seiffert Oval on September 17. The loser is left to fight for their season next weekend.
"You have pros and cons for everything, but the biggest one is if you win this week, you don't have to worry about trying to get to the grand final," Williams said.
"You don't want to be going into a match where it's a genuine knockout semi-final. Whatever happens happens, and we'll just deal with the result after Sunday."
A week after the Warriors prevailed in a Belconnen derby, the Sharks were singing from a different hymn sheet when it mattered most.
The Sharks had lost two games in a row and met a West Belconnen outfit riding a four-match winning streak - but anyone well versed in rugby league will tell you that all goes out the window when the finals kick off.
Beagley's boot was all that could separate the two sides at the break, gifting Belconnen United a 12-10 lead as they went to the sheds.
The Warriors were staring down the barrel of an eight-point deficit as the clock ticked down despite a Brandon Withers hat-trick, before two tries in four minutes gave them a lead.
The Sharks hit back through winger Jack Mills to level the scores and Beagley nailed the conversion to put Belconnen in front. The Warriors' last attacking raid came unstuck when fullback Lekani Mpaso offloaded straight into the waiting arms of Sharks centre Tevita Aroha-Tuinauvai.
So just as it was at half-time, Beagley's boot was the difference.
"I thought we had it earlier when we were up by eight, then they clawed back into it," Patch said.
"It was a good fought game from both sides. That's what finals footy feels like. We collapsed a few times throughout the year but that was an 80-minute performance."
AT A GLANCE
Canberra Raiders Cup minor semi-final: BELCONNEN UNITED SHARKS 30 (Darcy Leadbitter, Jay Slavin, Robert Aratangi, Jacob Piper, Jack Mills tries; Jack Beagley 5 goals) bt WEST BELCONNEN WARRIORS 28 (Brandon Withers 3, Kylan Edwards, Harry Brown tries; Withers 4 goals) at Kippax Oval.
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Caden Helmers
Caden Helmers is a sports journalist for The Canberra Times.
Caden Helmers is a sports journalist for The Canberra Times.
