Forced to play without inspirational captain-coach Daniel Fitzhenry, Southcity trailed 12-10 early in the second half before an intercept try to playmaker Nathan Rose in the 63rd minute allowed the Bulls to snatch a 16-12 victory.

In a mirror-image of a similar effort in the first half, Rose swooped on an Albury pass to race 75 metres for the most telling try of the opening five rounds of the competition.

Amid great tension, Rose's second runaway intercept try of the game eventually delivered a knockout blow to the high-rolling Thunder.

Standing tall after two straight grand final successes, and five wins in as many games to start 2014, Albury seemed to have a third title on a platter before yesterday's stunning reversal.

Taking aim at the growing confidence on the border, Southcity produced one of the most heroic defensive displays for years to topple the dual premier in the wet in Wagga.

Taking their lead from stand-in skipper Peter Little, the Bulls made a mountain of tackles to restrict Albury to just a try apiece in each of the two halves.

Injured captain-coach Fitzhenry was later in awe of the effort of the team to keep the Thunder's attacking arsenal so tightly under control.

Nursing a strained groin muscle legacy of Saturday's crushing loss by Riverina against Northern Rivers in the Country Championship, Fitzhenry paid glowing tribute to his gallant warriors.

"That was a gutsy win," Fitzhenry said.

"The boys defended really well.

"Everyone played for one another."

For Fitzhenry, there was no playing down the significance of the sometimes brutal win.

"This is was big game and we played like it (was)," he said.

"Albury threw plenty at us."

Taking stock, Fitzhenry praised the Bulls pack for taking on their formidable Albury rivals and coming out on top.

"All the forwards played really well," he said.

"They all turned up ... everyone turned up."

On a day when ball-control fell foul of the weather, Southcity and Albury played with the intensity of another grand final.

The two teams pounded each other from start to finish, with the physical torment taking its toll on all of the combatants.

Fitzhenry had no qualms about signalling out halves Nathan Rose and Peter Little for special mention.

"They were great," he said.

Little's speed off the line allowed him to help shut down Albury star Willie Heta, while Rose scored two amazing opportunist tries.

Barely six minutes in, Rose burst onto an Albury pass to charge 85m for a try before repeating the feat to get the Bulls home.

In between, Joe Silafau crashed over for a try for the first Albury try in the 14th minute and Ben Jeffery finished off a sweeping play to score for the Thunder in the 51st minute.

At times the Bulls were their own worst enemies - an 11-3 penalty count against the team was bad enough, but unforced errors were also a problem.

The avalanche of possession kept the Thunder deep in Southcity territory for the majority of the game, but the Bulls resolute defence refused to crumble