The ACT Brumbies have secured a Super Rugby Pacific finals spot and placed the NSW Waratahs' season on life support with a clinical 21-14 derby win in Sydney.
The Brumbies punished the Waratahs for their lack of execution, with 37-year-old lock Cadeyrn Neville proving an unlikely hero in Friday night's tense victory at Allianz Stadium.
While Australia's benchmark Brumbies also kept alive their hopes of a crucial top-four finish, another frustrating home defeat for the Waratahs left Dan McKellar's erratic outfit needing a miracle to make the playoffs.
The Tahs must beat the Western Force in Perth next Saturday and pray the sixth-placed Queensland Reds lose their remaining two regular-season games - against Moana Pasifika in Auckland and Fijian Drua in Brisbane - to scrape into the playoffs.
