The Melbourne Rebels have overcome a red card to Ray Nu'u to claim a 22-21 victory over the Western Force
The visitors raced out to an early 13-0 lead after a great offload from Matt To'omua put Jordan Uelese over.
However, a lack of discipline came back to almost haunt them as To'omua was yellow-carded for a high tackle, shortly followed by Nu'u being issued a red card.
This allowed the Force to claw their way back into the contest and eventually took the lead after three quick tries. With both teams desperate for the win, two late penalties from Matt To'omua and Reece Hodge proved the difference as they held on in wet conditions.
After missing Wallabies selection, Matt To'omua looked to inspire the Rebels to back-to-back victories as he produced a great offload to set up Uelese for the first try of the match.
Two further penalties from To'omua gave the visitors a quick 13-0 lead, with the Force's woes compounded by the yellow-carding of Kane Koteka.
Winger Manasa Mataele sparked the hosts into action as they returned to their full allotment of players, producing an incredible display of aerobatics to score in the corner.
The Rebels all of a sudden found themselves on the back foot when the TMO found a high tackle from To'omua in the build-up to Mataele's try, issuing him a yellow card.
Tries to Kyle Godwin and Brad Lacey, who was a late call-up to the starting side, saw the Force reduce the margin to a point.
It went from bad to worse for the visitors with Rebels centre Nu'u sent off in the 61st minute after a high tackle on Brynard Stander, once again reducing them to 14 men.
Despite this, the Rebels pack stood up and turned the contest, earning two key scrum penalties to put the visitors back in the lead.
Jake Strachan answered straight back for the Force with three of his own, but the Rebels dominated the final ten minutes, with Michael Wells nearly diving over late in the game.
In the end, Kevin Foote's men controlled possession and territory towards the end, ultimately securing the much-needed victory.
It puts them tied with the Hurricanes on points and just outside the top eight, looking to continue their revival against the Reds next week.
Meanwhile, Tim Sampson's men will lament an ill-disciplined performance as they slump to their fourth defeat in five games.
REBELS 22
TRIES: Uelese
CONS: To'omua 1/1
PENS: To'omua 3/4, Hodge 2/2
DGs: Hodge 0/1
RED CARD: Nu'u 51'
FORCE 21
TRIES: Mataele, Godwin, Lacey
CONS: Prior 0/3
PENS: Prior 1/1, Strachan 1/1
FORCE: 15. Jake Strachan, 14. Byron Ralston, 13. Kyle Godwin (c), 12. Bayley Kuenzle, 11. Manasa Mataele, 10. Reesjan Pasitoa, 9. Ian Prior, 8. Brynard Stander, 7. Kane Koteka, 6. Tim Anstee, 5. Fergus Lee-Warner, 4. Jeremy Thrush, 3. Santiago Medrano, 2. Andrew Ready, 1. Harrison Lloyd
Replacements: 16. Feleti Kaitu'u, 17. Bo Abra, 18. Greg Holmes, 19. Will Sankey 20. Ollie Callan, 21. Issak Fines-Leleiwasa, 22. Jake McIntyre, 23. Reece Tapine
REBELS: 15. Reece Hodge, 14. Andrew Kellaway, 13. Stacey Ili, 12. Raymond Nu'u, 11. Glen Vaihu, 10. Matt To'omua, 9. James Tuttle, 8. Michael Wells (c), 7. Richard Hardwick, 6. Brad Wilkin, 5. Josh Canham, 4. Matt Philip, 3. Cabous Eloff, 2. Jordan Uelese, 1. Matt Gibbon
Replacements: 16. James Hanson, 17. Cameron Orr, 18. Rhys van Nek, 19. Josh Hill, 20. Sam Wallis, 21. Joe Powell, 22. Carter Gordon, 23. George Worth
