Reds fall short in brave Lions rugby loss
Down two men and forced to make double the tackles, Queensland glimpsed sight of an incredible Super Rugby victory against the Lions before losing 27-20 in Johannesburg.
Yellow cards to forwards Taniela Tupou and debutant Josh Nasser either side of halftime briefly left the Reds with just 13 men as the Lions peppered their line looking to extend a 17-13 lead on Sunday morning.
But somehow the Reds held them out, breaking down the hosts’ scrum and maul before probing No.9 Tate McDermott popped out of the crowd to score under the posts and give them an unlikely lead with 15 minutes to play.
That came after impressive No.8 Harry Wilson was denied a try after inconclusive replays ensured the unlucky no-try call stood, despite a string of ruck infringements in the lead-up.
The Reds’ staunch defence finally caved though, Courtnall Skosan skipping through a gap as the Lions regained the lead and captain Elton Jantjies made it a seven-point game with a la te penalty kick.
Queensland still had their chances to steal a win at altitude, a cruel bounce from a Bryce Hegarty grubber kick spoiling a likely Henry Speight try before the winger fumbled twice in the closing stages.
Lions winger Tyrone Green was earlier denied a hat-trick when Speight’s desperate tackle dragged one of his feet over the sideline.
Jock Campbell scored the Reds’ first try, finishing a long-range effort he started by trapping a grubbered kick with his feet as the visitors shocked the small Ellis Park crowd.
Their defence was superb with the Reds’ scrum again forcing penalties and only a bizarre uncontested maul from a lineout handing man of the match Marnus Schoeman a try on the stroke of halftime.
The Reds, who enjoyed just 37 per cent of the ball and made 123 tackles to the Lions’ 64, weathered the storm in the second half but ultimately fell short for the second straight week.
Queensland have shown plenty of positive signs but are now 0-2 after coughing up a 10-point halftime lead against the Brumbies in round one.
They face a dangerous Jaguares outfit in Argentina next weekend before returning for their first home game against Japan’s Sunwolves.
AAP
Comments on RugbyPass
Crusaders reached their heights through recruitment of North Island players, often leaving those NI teams bereft of key players. Example: Scott Barrett and Sam Whitelock robbed the Canes of their lineout and AB locks. For years the Canes have struggled at lock. This rabid recruitment was iniated by rule changes by a Crusader dominated NZR Head Office. Now this aggressive recruitment has back-fired, going after young inside back Hamilton Boys stars. They now have 4 Chiefs region 10s and not one with the requisite experience at Super level. Problems of their own making!
1 Go to commentsOver rated for a long time…exposed at scrum time too.
3 Go to comments“Firing me” should have been Gatland’s answer.
2 Go to commentsFinn Russell logic: “World” = 4 countries. Ireland may be at or near the top. FR’s bigger concern should be he and his fellow Scots (incl. the Bloemfontein ones) sliding back down to below top 10
42 Go to commentsMind games have begun. Ireland learned their lesson after saying they could beat England with 13 players or whatever. Still, if they win at Loftus, that would be impressive - final frontier etc.
58 Go to comments$950k for a Prop that isn’t fit enough to play 10 mins of rugby? Surely there is someone better to replace Big Mike with
3 Go to commentsFour Kiwis in that backline. A solid statement on the lack of invention, risk-taking and joy in the NH game; game of attrition and head- banging tedium. Longterm medical problems aplenty in the future!
2 Go to commentsGood article, I learnt quite a lot. A big sliding door moment was in the mid 00s when they rejected Steve Anderson's long term transformation and he wrote Ireland's strategy instead.
2 Go to commentsHi Dr Nick! I'm worried that I've started to enjoy watching England and have actually wanted them to win their last two games. What would you prescribe? On a more serious note, I've noticed that the standard of play in March is often better than early February. Do you think this is because of the weather or because the players have been together for longer?
11 Go to commentsMy question in all this brett is who is going to wear the consequences of these actions? Surely just getting the sack isn’t sufficient? A teenager working the till at woolies would probably get taken to court if they took $20 out of the till. You mean to tell me that someone can spend $2.6 million and get away with it? Where was it spent? What companies/people were the beneficiaries etc? How is it just being talked about as an ‘oopsie’ and we all just move on and not a matter of the court for gross negligence, fraud, take your pick…
18 Go to commentslove Manu too but England have relied on him coming back from injury for far too long and not sorted the position with someone else long term . It will be a blessing he has gone . Huge shame he was so injury prone . God speed Manu .
3 Go to commentsI agree with Ben Smith about Brett Cameron. The No. 6 position has to be a monster and a genuine lineout option, like Ollivon, Lawes (now Chessum), Du Toit, etc. The only player who fits that bill right now is Scott Barrett. A fit and fizzing Tuipolotu together with one of the young towers, Sam Darry or Josh Lord, would give Razor the freedom to play Barret at 6.
16 Go to commentsOutstanding article, Graham. Agree with all of it. And enjoy the style of writing too (particularly Grand Slap!).
3 Go to commentsI wouldn't pay a cent for that loafer. He just stands around, waiting for play to come his way. He won't make the Wallabies.
3 Go to commentsGood bit of te reo maori Nic. Or is that Niko or Nikora? On the theme of trees the Oaks v Totara. Game plan would be key. I have one but it would cost you.
11 Go to comments> Shaun Edwards’ You should not have to score 30 points to win a game, as exciting as it is. This statement was surprising to me. It is nonsensical .I guess it is a defence coach speaking. But head coach, defence and attacking coaches all work together. They are inseparable. You score more than the opposition to win. It only needs to be one score. You score whatever the game demands, whatever the opposition demand. You defend whatever it takes. The attack coach needs to be able to clock up 30pts if need be.
11 Go to commentsWho’d have thought, not having Farrell & Youngs kicking the ball at every possible opportunity and playing flat and allowing your centres to run and pass would pay off? No one could possibly have seen this coming. FML. It took a LONG time coming but at least that time has finally come. England need to find a backup to Lawrence. Freeman is the best candidate for me, I see no reason why he can't play 12. He's big, strong, fast and has great hands.
11 Go to commentsLove Manu but he's not the player he was and I imagine Bayonne have paid too much money for him.
3 Go to commentsNew Zealand have not beaten England since 2018 and even that was a pretty close shave.
1 Go to comments“a renewed focus on Scottish-qualified players” Scottish-qualified is another way of saying English. England has development more players for the Scotland national Rugby team in the last 4 years, than Scotland has.
2 Go to comments