All posts by CJ
Super Rugby Showdown: Reds Secure Bonus Point Against Drua
The last home game for the Queensland Reds saw them play an uptempo match against Fijian Drua. 15,623 turned up to Suncorp and were thoroughly entertained. A comfortable 21-12 lead at halftime was quickly gobbled up by the Drua with two tries in 8 minutes by Manasa Mataele to put them ahead 24-21. The Reds were reinvigorated to score 4 more tries for a bonus point 45-24 win, lifting them to 5th on the Super Rugby table.
Aussie Gold Rush in Spain
Not since 2018 in Sydney have both our men’s and women’s Sevens teams won the HSBC 7s Round. This time in Valladolid, Spain, the penultimate round, ahead of Bordeaux next weekend, both our sides picked up Gold Medals. Beating the Top of the Table Blitzboks 26-19 shows a commitment our men’s team has been lacking. We’ve come to expect our women to do well, and their 27-14 win over the USA in the final, without star player Maddie Levi, was scintillating, putting them on top of their Table, leapfrogging New Zealand.
SLC v Marist Brothers, Ashgrove
Another Heartbreak at Ashgrove
For over 60 years, the rivalry between St. Laurence’s College and Marist Brothers Ashgrove has been intence. This afternoon was no exception going down 17-15.
We opened the score with an excellent try on the left flank, only to see our 5-0 lead evaporate 5 minutes later to the Blue & Gold.
It was the story of the day, leading for the large part of the match. With time almost up we defended gallantly only for Marist to score on the final buzzer.
Great to see plenty of Laurie’s old boys in the John Eales Stand. Traveling down from the Sunshine Coast, across from Singapore and returning from Japan 🗾
Western Gale Force Another Blow for The Reds
The Western Force has handed the Reds another close loss three weeks in a row last night in Perth, 19-14. What more do the Queenslanders have to do to cement their spot in the top 6? Discarded Reds players in the west outmuscle their former side with another technical performance proving the Suncorp thrashing wasn’t a blip. Saint Laurence’s old boy, John Bryant, replacing Fraser McReight, bumbled through the first half, dropping two important touches.
Two-try standout Carlos Tizzano was immense in an armwrestle with the Queensland Reds. 50 Super Rugby caps for the Wallaby back-rower showed he’s all class.
Tate McDermott Shines in UQ Rugby Return
On a balmy 23-degrees celcius afternoon of early autumn at the University of Queensland campus in St Lucia, a modest crowd watched a significant step in the journey of Brisbanerugby’s favourite son, Tate McDermott. In a flawless first-half performance for the Red Heavies, McDermott scored a try in classic style from a quick penalty tap. The boy is back, after the Reds’ second loss to the Western Force 14-19 in Perth; his return couldn’t come any sooner.
Reds vs Chiefs: A Thrilling Battle Overview
The Reds had their biggest home crowd of the season, with 14,438 of the faithful turning out for another cliffhanger two weeks in a row. Having lost the week before in super-point to the Blues during Super Round in Christchurch, the crowd were on their feet inside 10 minutes when Lachie Andersen showed what we had been missing since Round 4 with his return on the left flank, crashing over in the corner to put the Reds on the board first with a five-pointer converted by Harry McLaughlin-Phillips.
Chiefs replied quickly with a try to inform number 8, Wallace Sititi, and converted by the mercurial boot of Damien McKenzie, to level the score 7-all. The arm wrestle continued, and in the 14th minute, second-year New Zealand referee Marcus Playle awarded the Chiefs a penalty, giving McKenzie a shot at goal, basically in front of the posts; however, uncharacteristically, he pushed it to the right. Score remains 7-all.
In the 20th minute, Reds inside-centre, Hunter Paisami, gives his opposite number, Quinn Tupaea (VC), a bone-rattling tackle that requires the trainer to come to his assistance. The TMO deems it fair play.
The forward battle was immense when Playle awarded the Chiefs a try, which, on review, was denied due to several knock-ons. Under penalty advantage, McKenzie slots a penalty 5 minutes before half-time to put the visitors ahead 10-7. Another controversial decision by the Kiwi referee against Seru Uru denied the Reds a crucial 5-pointer before they went to the sheds. The Match Official has one look at it before the ref calls half-time to a huge chorus of boos from the crowd. Score remains Chiefs ahead 10-nil.
The entertainment didn’t stop with Conrad Sewell, who played fly-half for St. Laurence’s College up to Grade 10, providing his dulcet tones for the passionate crowd at the break (photo by David Kapernick @brisbanerugbycom).
The forward battle continued in the second half, with none other than Australia’s inform lock, Lukan Salakai-Loto (main photo by David Kapernick @brisbanerugbycom), snubbed by Joe Schmidt for the British & Irish Lions Tour last year; he will be first pick when Les Kiss takes the Wallabies’ coach’s seat from July. However, the Chiefs score first in the second half, extending their lead to 17-7.
McKenzie was under pressure and made a few errors as the battle intensified. The return of Carter Gordon also put a spring in the Reds’ step.
At the 65th minute mark, Harry Wilson receives the ball out wide from Gordon on the right flank, slips a pass (“the ball of the year“, according to Tim Horan in the commentary box) to Joe Brial, who goes over for a much-needed try. Converted by replacement half, Louis Werchon, to close the gap to 14-17.
A brain snap in the 68th minute by front rower, Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, results in a yellow card. Proving costly for the Reds when it led to a double for Chiefs’ replacement hooker, Samisoni Taukei’aho. McKenzie adds the extras for the lead to go back to a 10-point margin, 24-14.
In the 73rd minute, a long cut-out pass by Gordon puts 19-year-old Treyvon Pritchard in a position to score his first Super Rugby Pacific try, smoking McKenzie in the process, to close the margin to 21-24 with the successful conversion by replacement halfback, Luis Werchon.
In the 78th minute, Sititi goes over for a double, breaking the hearts of the Lang Park faithful to extend the lead back to ten, 31-21. The Chiefs close out the match, and a chance at a home quarter-final for the Reds goes begging.
With three more weeks of Super Rugby Pacific, coach Kiss has to focus his chargers on maintaining a position in the top six. He said after the match that he wanted his players to stay cool, even if the referees’ decisions went against them (12-5).
Rugby at Hanazono
About a 20-minute train trip east of the transit station of Namba in Osaka, we find the rugby town of Hanazono. The Hanazono Rugby Stadium 🏟️ was established in 1929, the first stadium in Japan specifically designed for rugby. I got off the Kintetsu-Nara Line at Higashi Hanazono. I made my way to the stadium, about a 15-minute walk away, past shops and restaurants supporting the local team known as the Kintetsu Liners (est. 1929); even the manhole covers displayed rugby images from when Japan hosted the Rugby World Cup in 2019, and this boutique stadium, which holds about 27,000 spectators, was one of the venues for some of the international matches. In fact, there will be another international match there this year, when the Japanese Brave Blossoms host the Wallabies on August 8th.
A pleasant 24 degrees Celsius on Saturday and largely blue skies, after a few rainy days during the week, saw the locals turn out in force for this Japanese Div. 2 match between 1 and 3 on the table. What was supposed to be a walk in the park for the local Kintetsu Liners certainly looked that way when they ran in the first try. With Springbok legend, five-eight Manie Libbok, at the helm, the Liners looked every bit why they were the Top of Div. 2 and regained their status in Japan League One. However, the Shimizu Koto Blue Sharks were not going to give up without a fight. Their half of the East Stand in blue (see photo below) became vocal as they started scoring points. Rugby in Japan is serious business.
At halftime, the beer queue under the stadium was long but efficient, and I had some yaki-soba washed down with a Nikka Black Highball. The smoking area was set up like a rugby field.
In the second half, the men from Koto-ku in Tokyo kept their foot on the pedal, snuffing out any chance the local team had of winning. Kintetsu are one of the oldest rugby clubs in Japan, founded in 1929. They have won three All-Japan National titles: 1966, 1967 & 1974 and eight Company Championships: 1953, 1956, 1957, 1961, 1966, 1969, & 1074 (Wikipedia). It’s been a while since they’ve won any titles, so they need to get back into the Japan League One. An Australian coach, John Mulvihill, from Souths Rugby Club in Brisbane, was the last person to get them back into that top league, and he coached them for several years. Currently, two former players and Brisbanerugby favourite sons, Will Genia and Quade Cooper, are the present head-coaches. Genia told me he was quietly confident his team would pull through the play-offs at the end of May to regain their position in League One. However, the Shimizu Koto Blue Sharks were not going to make their job any easier by running away with the 29-19 victory this afternoon.
Winners Are Grinners
After being blown out of the park in their last two outings, Les Kiss’ men finally showed the Suncorp faithful that they are genuine Super Rugby Pacific contenders. Having the Hurricanes put 50+ points on them at the Cake-tin, and then the Western Force a further 40+ at home, the Reds’ dressing room was a lot happier place to be last night after defeating last year’s premiers, the Crusaders 31-26, for the first time since 2012. In Filipo Daugunu’s 100 Super Rugby cap, he showed that he is a world-class winger, scoring a try of his own. Kiss said in the post-match conference that his versatility from 12 to 15 makes him a valuable asset.
16,000+ were on hand to witness two great adversaries throw everything, bar the kitchen sink, at each other in the muggy conditions at the Cauldron. The men from Christchurch opened the scoring through Vice-Captain, Christian Lio-Willie, in the 5th minute after both teams had been playing expansive rugby from the kick-off. Lang Park has been a favourite hunting ground for the Crusaders since their loss in the Super Rugby final in 2011. However, the ghosts of that era were on hand to inspire the Reds, including Digby Ioane, Scott Higginbotham, Jake Schatz, and James Hansen, as the Reds beat the Crusaders twice that year. Reds Captain Courageous, Fraser McReight, drew on that energy, having been a young schoolboy in the crowd that night. Ioane was proudly watching his former team break a 19-all deadlock in the last 10 minutes with a Daugunu runaway try in the 73rd minute to lead 24-19. Memories of Will Genia running away with a break to 50 metres out to break a 13-all deadlock 15 years ago to win the Super Rugby title.
Brisbane Rugby.com 