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Cooper, Graham, O'Connor? What is the reason for the Reds downfall?

Roar Rookie
5th June, 2014
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James O'Connor has been in Marto's crosshairs. (AAP Image/Dan Peled)
Roar Rookie
5th June, 2014
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2887 Reads

Picture this – the Reds versus the Chiefs. For the winner, the prize was a place in the semi-finals.

The Chiefs, the former premiers, would go onto win the Super Rugby Championship. The Reds lost 34-9, but didn’t go down without a fight.

Now, back in reality in 2014, the Reds are in the bottom five of the table with only four wins from 13 games. With a little over a 30 per cent win rate, the Reds are looking like missing the finals.

What has changed since last year? The Reds coach of three years, Ewen McKenzie, has since left and is coaching the Wallabies. While that may be a significant change, the success of a team can’t come from just the coach or one player.

Ewen McKenzie has been known to build sides and put them onto the path of success, but what has happened with the Reds?

The Reds should be a good team with big names like James Horwill, Will Genia, Quade Cooper and James Slipper. All of these men are playing for Australia.

Could it be the speculation surrounding James O’Connor?

After previously being released by the ARU for off-field incidents, it was announced by the Reds board that James O’Connor may be joining them next season as a winger. We know the history between him and Cooper, a lot of drinking and going to Hungry Jacks at 1am a day before a game.

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So maybe this has unsettled the Reds and their culture.

“I was with him (O’Connor) in 2010 in the Wallabies and I thought he was the best winger in the world at that point in time,” Reds coach Richard Graham said at the time that the signing was being debated.

O’Connor is undoubtedly an amazing rugby player. He is very young and perhaps just going through the whole early 20s party phase.

But would he be a destabilising influence on the side?

“There is absolutely no doubt about his footballing quality, he is an outstanding footballer. Over time, potentially moving from wing or full-back into the inside backs compromised his development but certainly as a winger in 2010 I thought he was outstanding,” said Graham.

The Reds have a strong history, winning four championships (1992,1994-95 and 2011) and making it into the semi-finals eight times.

But with a poor showing in 2014, this history is at stake.

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Someone in the Reds management needs to work out where the side are going wrong, and soon.

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