For much of the night, it looked like Ken Ilsø simply could not get the better of Syazwan Buhari at Yishun Stadium.
Time and again, the Home United goalkeeper was thwarted by the Courts Young Lions custodian, with the duel turning out to be a major subplot in the Great Eastern Yeo's S.League clash.
That only made the relief sweeter when the breakthrough came, however, with the Dane grabbing his 11th league goal in the 84th minute to seal a come-from-behind 2-1 win.
The uniformed giants were looking to end a four-game losing streak with victory at home in their final game of the season, but found Syazwan in seemingly unstoppable form.
His heroics started as early as the fourth minute, parrying Ilsø's fierce angled drive, before going on to save efforts from Azhar Sairudin, Stanely Ng and Yasir Hanapi.
On the occasion he was beaten, the bar came to the rescue as Ng's stabbed effort crashed off it after the winger was played in by the effervescent Ilsø.
The Young Lions only really threatened once, right after their woodwork was tested, but Shahril Jantan stood his ground to make a fine save from Nur Na'iim Ishak after the latter raced clear.
Almost inevitably though, Home were punished for their profligacy and it came six minutes into the second half.
Shahril was beaten to the ball by Jordan Webb, who clipped it back across from the byline for Taufik Suparno to bundle home, despite protests from Home that it was cleared off the line in time.
Memories of how the Young Lions staged a smash-and-grab 1-0 win on the same ground earlier this year came back, but were banished seven minutes later.
Ilsø, the undoubted heartbeat of the Home attack throughout, showed superb awareness at the far post to head Sirina Camara's delicious left-wing cross back into the box.
It was perfectly set-up for Ng, who unhesitatingly rifled in his second goal in as many games and his fourth of the season from ten yards.
But the Ilsø-Syazwan show continued, with the shot-stopper denying the striker twice more thereafter, while also making another save from Yasir for good measure.
The pick of his highlight reel for the night came in the 80th minute, when Ilsø's header from point-blank range was somehow kept out by stupendous reflexes.
From the resulting corner, the same man planted a free header a whisker past the post from six yards.
But Ilsø refused to give up the cause -- and the former Fortuna Dusseldorf hotshot was rewarded at long last with time running out.
Substitute Sufianto Salleh made an immediate impact, roaming down the left and sending in a cross that his pony-tailed teammate tucked away past the obdurate Syazwan before roaring in delight.
"It was a big relief seriously," Ilsø told ESPN FC afterward. "I also thought it was not going to be the day I was going to score; I had a lot of chances, but credit to the goalkeeper, he did a good job, he was doing very well with his legs today, his reflexes."
With 19 shots and 12 of those on target, the victory could have been far easier and Home boss Philippe Aw admitted as much, noting that it had been the same case for much of the campaign.
"We've dominated games, but we can't score while conceding dubious goals," he said after watching his team seal sixth spot. "Of course we are not happy [about the position] but if you look at the performances this season, the boys have done very well - we play an exciting brand of football that is pleasing for the fans."
Aw also praised younger players like R. Aaravin, Ng and Sufianto for "grabbing" their opportunities in his debut season as a coach and emphasised the need to keep the team's core and build on it next year.
For now, all thoughts are on their RHB Singapore Cup second-leg clash with Brunei DPMM on the 24th.
"They really deserved this," Aw said of the win. "It's good that we go into the Cup semi-final on a winning momentum."
Home United: Shahril Jantan, Juma'at Jantan, Noh Rahman (C), R. Aaravin, Sirina Camara, Song Ui-young, Yasir Hanapi (Nur Hizami 90'+1), Stanely Ng (Sufianto Salleh 81'), Azhar Sairudin (Imran Sahib 73'), Kamel Ramdani, Ken Ilsø
Courts Young Lions: Syazwan Buhari (C), Fadli Kamis, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Amirul Adli, Safirul Sulaiman, Ammirul Emmran (Shamil Sharif 67'), Afiq Noor, Amy Recha (Irfan Fandi 37'), Nur Na'iim Ishak (Suria Prakash 77'), Jordan Webb, Taufik Suparno