Waratahs snatch incredible comeback win

Centre David Horowitz scored a try in the final minute to cap a second-half fightback to give the NSW Waratahs a thrilling 32-25 win over the Rebels in Melbourne on Friday.

The Waratahs trailed 25-6 at half-time but squeezed home on the back of four second-half tries to deny the Rebels a prized victory over their better-resourced Australian rivals.

The Waratahs looked to be heading for their fourth successive loss to heap further pressure on their coach Daryl Gibson, before their stirring comeback.

"To come back from 25-6 down and the position we were, being 1-3, it was a pretty crucial win for us," Gibson said.

"I'm thrilled for the boys because it will give them a great deal of confidence and show them that when we hold the ball and don't make errors and mistakes, we can be a very good football team."

Wallaby fly-half Bernard Foley, back in the side after missing five weeks with post-concussion symptoms, led the way for the Waratahs with three conversions and two penalties.

The Rebels, their future beyond this season uncertain amid Super Rugby restructuring, stormed to a 19-point lead by half-time but lost three players - hooker James Hanson and locks Dom Day and Culum Retallick - to concussion.

Melbourne ran out of legs in the second half with their errors started to mount and they were reduced to 14 men in their final crucial minutes when Colby Faingaa was sin-binned.

It was Melbourne's second heartbreaking loss after being overrun by the Waikato Chiefs in the last round.

The Waratahs finally found some playing fluency after the interval and 21-year-old lock Ned Hanigan scored to put his side back in the contest.

The margin was further reduced when Reece Robinson beat fellow rugby league convert Marika Koroibete to score in the corner.

With all the rugby being played in the Rebels half the Waratahs reaped the rewards in the 77th minute when they elected to take a scrum 10 metres out rather than a penalty with Michael Wells scoring.

Horowitz then capitalised on the numerical superiority by darting through a gap and sealing the Waratahs’ second win of the season.

The Rebels failed to score in the second half and just ran out of firepower. The desperate loss leaves the Rebels without a win from their four games.

"100 percent, no doubt, it was a wasted opportunity," Rebels coach Tony McGahan said.

"We needed to grab some control. We scrambled and defended as well as we could but we just needed to keep the ball to get ourselves back in the game."

The Waratahs take on New Zealand's Canterbury Crusaders at home next weekend, while the Rebels are away to the Otago Highlanders.