Highlanders flyhalf Lima Sopoaga kicked a penalty after the hooter to give his team a 29-28 victory over the Bulls after a thrilling Super Rugby match at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday evening.
The Bulls took the lead in the 76th minute of the match when flyhalf Handré Pollard converted Jesse Kriel's try. However, with time up on the clock, the visitors from New Zealand were awarded a penalty after a Bulls player was blown up for offside.
Sopoaga, who had been kicking his goals from all angles earlier in the evening, then stepped up and coolly slotted the penalty to give the Highlanders four vital points for the win.
The Bulls, though, should have won this match, as they had more than two-thirds of the possession. But a combination of brilliant defence by the Highlanders, and errors on attack by the home side led to their downfall.
The Highlanders took the lead in the fourth minute of the match when Fletcher Smith broke the line before kicking the ball through. The ball then bounced kindly for scrumhalf Aaron Smith to control it with his legs before scoring.
The Bulls finally got onto the scoreboard in the 23rd minute when they were awarded a penalty try after Fletcher Smith couldn't field a grubber kick and pulled back Bulls fullback Warrick Gelant without the ball. Smith was also sent to the bin for for the indiscretion.
Pollard then stretched the Bulls' lead out to 14-7 when he intercepted a loose Highlanders pass to score under the poles.
Sopoaga, though, pulled three points back for the Highlanders shortly before the break, and slotted another penalty two minutes after halftime to make it a one-point game to the Bulls.
Fletcher Smith would then make up for his yellow card by rounding off a wonderful team try in the 44th minute that involved all the Smiths.
The Highlanders found themselves under pressure in their own half, but some quick decision-making saw Ben Smith break down the right flank, before passing inside to Aaron Smith, who then offloaded to Fletcher Smith to score.
Sopoaga kicked another penalty in the 54th minute to give the visitors a 23-14 lead.
But the Bulls got back into the contest with a Jason Jenkins try following a bullocking run by Bulls prop Lizo Gqoboka.
Sopoaga made no mistake with the penalty in the 62nd minute, and the Highlanders clung onto their lead until the 77th minute when Pollard put Kriel into a gap to score, before converting the try to give his team a two-point lead.
However, Sopoaga would have the last say when he kicked a 40m penalty win the game for the Highlanders.