Coach Stephen Larkham hailed the ACT Brumbies' composure after a grinding 14-10 win over the Highlanders ended their lean run of form in Super Rugby.
It came after Larkham replaced back-rower Charlie Cale midway through the first half due to shoulder soreness.
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Substitute forward Luke Reimer capitalised on his team's one-man advantage to score a decisive late try in Dunedin on Friday night, lifting the Australian side to third in the standings.
The result came as a relief for Larkham, whose team led the competition through the opening weeks before they lost three of their last four games.
"We had to sort of stay in it, keep composed and wait for our opportunity," Larkham told reporters.
"Things didn't go our way, but we kept our composure and that's probably a trait of the team that we've seen this year.
"It's putting us in a really good position to win these sorts of games."
The Brumbies sought to alleviate fears around their star back-rower Cale after the game, whose replacement was initially suggested to be 'tactical reasons.'
"Charlie was withdrawn as a precautionary tactical replacement after appearing affected by a heavy contact. As he cooled down, he reported some shoulder soreness. He will be assessed over the coming days," the statement from the club said.
Captain Ryan Lonergan scored the opening try in his 100th match for the Brumbies and landed both conversions.
Trailing 7-3 at halftime, the Highlanders went ahead through wing Jona Nareki's try.
A late yellow card shown to Highlanders hooker Henry Bell for high contact helped pave the way for the Brumbies to launch a late attack which resulted in Reimer's try.
Seasoned scrum-half Lonergan believed the result could mark a turning point in their season.
"We started really well and then we let ourselves down in a few games so to be able to grind this one out, it's massive for us," he said.
"It's still not exactly how we want to play our game."
