The match could have had 10 replays for a different result each time with the bounce of the ball and the interpretations of the laws issued by referee Andrew Birch leaving the ultimate result in the balance until the final play of the day.
Many times we were pulled up short of the line in the first half, then were denied again in the second, Crushers coach Rob Hoy lamented.
I thought we had the measure of Breakers but full credit to them for hanging on.
Breakers entered the arena first and Crushers delayed their entry, beginning a tactical battle of wits that raged all afternoon.
Nah, not really .. but it was lovely to see them getting dirty with us, Hoy joked when asked if it was part of the gamesmanship.
But in defiance of expectations, it was Crushers who made the rattling start when Kevin Simpson scooted across for the opening try and when Gus Garland added a penalty soon after, Breakers were on the back foot.
The revival began with Mitch Walton opening holes in the defensive line and once Jono Jones touched down, the real contest began in earnest.
Winning co-coach Nick Joyce said his team found it difficult to get structure during the middle period as the injury toll mounted.
It helped us in the long term when it didn't become an all-out forward battle, he said.
Getting the backs from both sides to throw the ball around opened it up and made the game something extra.
The lead changed hands twice in the second half before Breakers established a four-point buffer with 10 minutes remaining.
Then, with a penalty awarded to Crushers, the decision was made to seek three points from a shot at goal, instead of kicking to the corner and launching another raid on the try line.
In hindsight ... maybe we should have gone for the corner but there was still time, Hoy said. I just wish that opportunity had come a few minutes earlier.
With time running out and Crushers camped in Breakers 'red zone', big Joel Riddle made a series of surging rushes at the line that were only stopped by centimetres.
It was a close-run thing but Breakers held on for their place in history, and another premiership title for a battered and bruised No 8, Paul Butcher.
Rib cartilage gone, that's my excuse for slackening off, he laughed.
We did it hard running up that hill and they kept coming at us.
That was the cue for coaching partner Nick Joyce to throw his two bob's-worth in.
We kept coming back too, don't forget that Butch, he said.
There were many great performances in both sides. Ben Wallace made a big impact in Breakers' backline and was judged man-of-the-match, with fellow young guns Mitch Walton and Jono Jones hot on his trail.
For the runners-up, captain Craig Landrigan was an awesome presence while Gus Garland made inroads in the opening exchanges and Vilise Vatuvili was a menacing sight in full flight all afternoon.
