The Central Queensland Capras produced a determined fightback and strong finish to defeat Northern Pride 24-14 at Aurizon Stadium in Round 22 of the Hostplus Cup.

The Capras had to work their way into the contest after Northern Pride jumped to an 8-0 lead inside the opening 10 minutes, but the early setback did not get away from the home side.

Central Queensland steadied and began working back into the match, with Connor Guley breaking through in the 21st minute to get the Capras on the scoreboard.

Khaiya Waiembi then crossed in the 34th minute and Trey Brown converted, completing a 10-point response and sending Central Queensland into half-time with a 10-8 advantage.

The contest remained tight after the break before Rodrick Tai gave the Capras some breathing room in the 56th minute, crossing for his first try to stretch the lead to 14-8.

Northern Pride hit back almost immediately. Jaxson Paulo crossed in the 59th minute and Zac Herdegen converted to bring the visitors level at 14-all, leaving the match up for grabs heading into the final 20 minutes.

Central Queensland found the response they needed.

Brown broke the deadlock with a penalty goal in the 70th minute, putting the Capras back in front 16-14 before Tai delivered the decisive try four minutes later.

His second of the afternoon pushed the margin to six points, and Brown’s conversion made it 22-14 as Central Queensland took control of the closing stages.

Brown added another penalty goal in the 79th minute to complete the scoring and put the finishing touch on a 24-14 home victory.

It capped a resilient performance from the Capras after they were forced to chase the game early. Central Queensland conceded the opening eight points before scoring the next 14, then found another response when Northern Pride fought back to level the match in the second half.

With the contest locked at 14-all, the Capras were at their best when the result was there to be decided, scoring the final 10 points and keeping the Pride scoreless over the closing stages.

Tai finished with two tries, including the decisive second-half score, while Guley and Waiembi both crossed during Central Queensland’s first-half recovery. Brown contributed eight points from two conversions and two penalty goals, with his 70th-minute penalty putting the Capras ahead for good.

After being put under pressure early and challenged again late, Central Queensland found the points when they mattered to secure the 24-14 win at Aurizon Stadium.