Both sides ignored the appalling conditions to present a local derby that had no shortage of big hits, desperate play and an overwhelming sense of passion.
The players went at each other with a vengeance from the moment referee Michael Tonks opened proceedings and were still slogging away at the end of the night.
Winning coach Rob Hoy agreed superior communication between his players had provided a narrow advantage.
They really dug in and talked it up, while working on lifting each other, he said.
It helped our backline to stand up and dominate by knocking the Breakers backwards and forcing them into errors.
At every moment in the game we looked the more dangerous side.
Purists would have preferred a short passing game and safety-first style of football but the slippery ball was treated like a hand grenade with the pin removed, and it was that sort of tactic which led to the spectacular opening try.
With play bogging down in the middle and a scoreless first half looming as a possibility, fullback Will Guest began a long looping run which found an overlap and with Gus Garland backing up on the inside, the dam was broken.
Matt Quirk replied down a short blindside soon after but already the signs of an upset were in the air.
Our phase play kept breaking down and we turned too much ball over, Breakers co-coach Nick Joyce explained.
It was hard from the start, the wet conditions always favoured who scored first and we tried hard but time ran out.
The game was probably won soon after the second half resumption when with the Breakers camped in their quarter and throwing everything at the line, Crushers' defence held solid for almost a full quarter-hour.
Coach Hoy said it was 'stirring stuff' and once the wave of attack was broken and play moved to the other end, he felt a win was just around the corner.
That sort of stuff lifts you as a team, he said.
It was a nervous wait for the final whistle but I was comfortable we'd get there eventually.
Despite the heavy contact both sides backed up for regulation matches on Saturday and again scored good wins
Results
COFFS CRUSHERS 10 (Angus Garland try; Angus Garland conversion; Angus Garland penalty) d ef COFFS BREAKERS 8 (Matt Quirk try; Steve Hackett penalty).
