Watch: Reds lock Ryan Smith takes surprise shot at goal in statement win

It’s not often you see a second-rower line up a shot at goal, but Ryan Smith was given that rare honour on Saturday as the Queensland Reds celebrated a memorable 52-7 win over the Fijian Drua, in what was also the lock’s last Super Rugby Pacific match in Brisbane.

Backrower Joe Brial helped the Reds reach a half-century of points with a try in the 79^th minute, which set the stage for Smith’s fitting farewell. Smith was handed the goal-kicking tee, and initially gave it back, before stepping up to take the shot from right in front.

With a group of Reds players watching on, and the Drua standing in a circle within the in-goal area, Smith sent the ball through the uprights and into the crowd. Stan Sport commentator Sean Maloney was initially caught off-guard when realising who’d taken the conversion.

 

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Smith is set to join Ospreys ahead of the 2025/26 URC season, with that transfer announced by the Welsh club in late April. While it’s a big loss for Australian rugby, with Smith included in a Wallabies training squad in 2024, Smith’s last Super Rugby home game couldn’t have gone any better.

“The boys threw it to me and I said no initially and gave the tee back and they insisted,” Smith told James Horwill on Stan Sport

“I honestly nearly missed. I nearly didn’t have the legs for it.

“That’s something new for me.”

With the Blues beating the NSW Waratahs, and the Hurricanes recording an emphatic win over Moana Pasifika earlier on Saturday, the Reds’ fate was already sealed ahead of the match against the Drua at Suncorp Stadium.

The Reds will visit Christchurch next week, seeking an upset win over the Crusaders, who are coming off a valiant win over the Brumbies in Canberra. Queensland finished fifth overall, but remain in the race for the top prize.

After losing to the Drua only a few weeks earlier in Fiji, the Reds looked to end their round-robin on a positive note with a statement result. That’s exactly what they achieved, claiming an emphatic 45-point win, with Lahie Anderson crossing for a four-try haul.

Anderson opened the scoring in the 11^th minute, completing a hat-trick only 10 minutes later before Josh Canham got on the scoreboard. Queensland would take a 33-nil lead into the half-time break, although the second term was much closer.

Haereiti Hetet scored the Drua’s first and only try of the evening just after the interval, before the Reds regained control with Josh Flook, Filipo Daugunu and Brial scoring second-half tries. It was a classy performance from the Reds, who finished the season with an 8-6 record.

“We really talked about backing ourselves,” Smith reflected.

“We had a big focus, obviously we’re going into finals from here but we had a real focus that this week is the only thing we have to pay for.

“To come out and keep the foot on the throat there and score some nice tries against a really tough Drua team, we’re really happy with that.

“We focused really on this game, it’s a massive one for us. Obviously, we lost the game against these guys earlier in the year so we really wanted to get the win here tonight.

“I’m really proud of the boys for stepping up there, a full 80-minute performance.”