Stung by two Temora tries in the first half, Junee trailed 10-4 at half-time, but recovered impressively to dump the Dragons 34-22.

Taking their lead from the skipper, the Diesels blazed on five straight tries to start the second half to storm out to a commanding 28-10 advantage.

As much as the Dragons hit back with tries to second rower Kris Rands (69th minute) and hooker Gavin Kite (76th), Junee was safely home – and still riding high in second spot on the Group Nine table.

With Junee now heading into a challenging finish to the home and away series, Hands admitted the Diesels needed to learn from Sunday’s stuttering performance.

“We were a bit flat in the first half,” Hands said.

“Hats off to the boys for the way they played in the second half.

“We just can’t afford to start slowly in the tough games coming up.”

Although currently second on the ladder, the Diesels face a monumental test of character to retain the lofty position for the finals.

In quick succession, Junee will tangle with Albury (away), Kangaroos (home) and Young (away) to finish the competition rounds.

Hands stressed the “tough run” to the wire would only strengthen the resolve of the team to break the town’s premiership drought.

“I think we showed what we can do in the second half,” Hands said.

“I know they (Temora) got a couple of soft tries near the end, but we had it by then.”

For Junee, the opening term on Sunday was a football nightmare.

Pitched against a team with little or no incentive or inspiration, the Diesels were outgunned by the Dragons.

Amid a pile of errors in the opening 15 minutes, Temora showed greater control and urgency – and eventually got a reward.

From a tap penalty in the 21st minute, Kite served up a neat pass for fullback Scott Bowden to duck and lunge over from 12 metres.

In front 4-0, the Dragons struck again when Daniel Fitzhenry put through a perfect grubber kick four minutes later for Clinton Green to pounce for a try.

Not to be outdone, however, Hands responded with a similar kick to set up winger Liam Sweeney for a try a try in the 29thminute.

And Junee’s remarkable revival was underway.

After applying sustained pressure to Temora to open the second half, Junee got back on level terms when Matt Hands bolted over for a try in the 50th minute off a pass from his younger brother Cameron.

Given more possession, Junee made mincemeat of the Dragons in an electrifying 14-minute period as Daniel Foley (52ndminute), Peter Little (56th), Brad McCarthy (61st) and Will Merritt (66th) also whipped on tries.

By the time the Dragons drew breath again, they were down 28-10 and out of the contest.

While Matt Hands was outstanding, hooker Trent Schuback, Foley and Merritt were also excellent.

The losers were led gallantly by Michael Henderson, but Rands and Kite were even better.

Full-time

JUNEE 32 (D Foley 2, L Sweeney, P Little, M Hands, W Merritt, B McCarthy tries; C Hands 2 goals) d TEMORA 22 (S Bowden, C Green, G Kite, K Rands tries; T Krause 3 goals) at Laurie Daley Oval. Scrums: 6-5. Penalties: 6-12