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Queensland Reds heading forward with youth movement– Super Rugby 2018 Preview
No team has had as tumultuous an offseason as the Queensland Reds.
There have been more dramas at Ballymore than an episode of the Kardashians. The turnstile of head coaches continued with the appointment of Brad Thorn last year, ending the short stint of Nick Stiles, who ousted co-coach Matt O’Connor, both of whom replaced Richard Graham.
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Thorn stamped his authority early, promptly telling halfback Nic Frisby and beloved flyhalf Quade Cooper they won’t be required for the upcoming season, creating a firestorm of media attention and fan backlash.
Things went from bad to worse when Karmichael Hunt became embroiled in his second off-field drugs scandal, and to top it off ex-Wallaby legend George Smith was arrested in Japan.
After everything the fan base has been through the last few years, things couldn’t get any worse.
Amid all the noise, what Thorn has done is draw the line in the sand. He has been the first coach to make proactive personnel moves seemingly against the will of Reds recruitment manager Sam Cordingley.
With Cooper only one year into his three-year $800,000 per season contract, dropping him to club rugby is a lot of dead money for the cash-strapped Reds which shows Thorn is hell-bent on starting a new era.
A spate of high-profile, short-sighted signings have glossed over poor performance in recent years – Karmichael Hunt, James O’Connor, Ayumu Goromaru, Stephen Moore, George Smith, Leroy Houston and league converts like Lachlan Maranta have renewed hope but underwhelmed.
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Each year they have banked on short-term (and often expensive) fixes, instead of taking a hit and building around young talent for the long-term. This is what is finally happening at the Reds – Thorn is preparing to re-build around his young charges.
He has regenerated the forward pack by upgrading a number of youth system players; Angus Blyth, Harry Hockings, Harry Hoopert, Angus Scott-Young and Liam Wright, most of whom played under Thorn in the Reds under-20s.
Quade’s replacement is 20-year-old flyhalf Hamish Stewart, who debuted last year. 21-year-old James Tuttle looks to be the number one halfback and the midfield pairing of Duncan Paia’aua and captain Samu Kerevi are still only 23 and 24-years-old respectively.
The few signings they have made, are all ironically ex-players that were unwanted or squeezed out at some stage. While Jono Lance, Ben Lucas and Aidan Toua aren’t splash-recruits, they will bring valuable experience and key positional depth to the side at flyhalf and fullback to cover for the loss of Cooper and Hunt.
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The Reds nursery is one of the best in Australia – they run talent at a surplus but often export the best of it to other teams – see David Pocock, Sean McMahon and a young James O’Connor (pre-braids and cornrows). Eventually, the system will re-produce quality Super Rugby starters.
With less focus on high-profile recruiting and more on retaining talent, a Reds turnaround shouldn’t take too long, just don’t expect too much this year. Although with just four, three and four wins in the last three seasons 2018 could still be an improvement.
2018 Predictions
Australian Conference Placing: 4th
Player of the Year: Samu Kerevi
Rookie of the Year: Angus Blyth
Breakout Player: Duncan Paia’aua
Best Signing: Ben Lucas
Franchise History
Best finish: Champions in 2011
Worst finish: Fifteenth in 2016
Squad movements
In: Angus Blyth (Bond University), Filipo Daugunu (Queensland Country), Harry Hockings (University of Queensland), Harry Hoopert (Brothers Old Boys), Tate McDermott (Queensland Country), Brandon Paenga-Amosa (NSW Country Eagles), Angus Scott-Young (Queensland Country), JP Smith (Brumbies), Liam Wright (Queensland Country), Ben Lucas (Toyota Verbitz), Jono Lance (Worcester Warriors), Aidan Toua (Brumbies).
Out: Leroy Houston (Bordeaux), Phil Kite (Vannes), Chris Kuridrani (Brisbane City), Campbell Magnay (Sungoliath), Jake McIntyre (Agen), Stephen Moore (retired), Caderyn Neville (Toyota Industries Shuttles), Jayden Ngamanu (Brisbane City), Rob Simmons (Waratahs), Kirwan Sanday (Queensland Country), Henry Taefu (Colomiers), Sam Takakai (Rebels), Hendrik Tui (Sungoliath), Quade Cooper (released), Nick Frisby (released).
Full Squad: Angus Blyth, Filipo Daugunu, Kane Douglas, Sef Fa’agase, Chris Feauai-Sautia, Michael Gunn, Reece Hewat, Scott Higginbotham, Harry Hockings, Harry Hoopert, Karmichael Hunt, Samu Kerevi, Adam Korczyk, Jono Lance, Ben Lucas, Alex Mafi, Lachlan Maranta, Tate McDermott, Eto Nabuli, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Duncan Paia’aua, Izaia Perese, Andrew Ready, Izack Rodda, Angus Scott-Young, James Slipper, George Smith, Jean-Pierre Smith, Moses Sorovi, Hamish Stewart, Caleb Timu, Aidan Toua, Lukhan Tui, Taniela Tupou, James Tuttle, Markus Vanzati, Liam Wright.
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Comments on RugbyPass
Exciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
11 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
3 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
26 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
3 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
3 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
11 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
5 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
5 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
5 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
26 Go to commentsI wonder if Parling was ever on England’s radar as a coach? Obviously Borthwick is a great lineout coach, but I do worry he might be taking on too much as both head coach and forwards coach.
1 Go to commentsJason Jenkins has one cap. When Etzebeth was his age he had over 80 caps. Experience matters. He will never amount to what Etzebeth has because he hasn’t been developed as an international player.
2 Go to commentsSays much about the player picking this gig over the easier and bigger rewards offered to him in Japan. Also says a lot about the state sanctioned tax benefits the Irish Revenue offers pro rugby players, with their ten highest earning years subject to an additional 40% tax relief and paid as a lump sum, in cash, at retirement. Certainly helps Leinster line up the financial ducks in a row to fund marquee signings like this!!! No other union anywhere in world rugby benefits from this kind of lucrative financial sponsorship from their government…
5 Go to commentsTrue Jordie could earn a lot more in Japan. But by choosing Leinster he’ll be playing with 1 of the best clubs in the world and can win a champions cup and URC…..
6 Go to commentsThanks for that Marshy, noticed you didn't say who is gonna win it. We know who ain't gonna win it - your Crusaders outfit. They've gone from having arguably the best Super Rugby first five ever, to having a clutch of rookies. Hurricanes all the way!
1 Go to commentsGeez you really have to question the NRLs ability to produce players of quality. Its pathetic. Dont the 25mil in Aus produce enough quality womens players. Sad.
1 Go to commentsBulls fan here, and agree 100% with the conclusion (and little else) of this article. SA sides should absolutely f-off from the champs cup until we get fair scheduling, equal support for travel arrangements and home semis. You know, like all the european teams get.
26 Go to comments