The Queensland Reds have beaten the Bulls from South Africa 20 to 14 in a tense match up in Brisbane.
It was always going to be a tight one between these two as they seemed quite evenly matched both in terms of personnel and form.
To begin with though the Bulls looked like they might have a bit more class as they pulled ahead with two tries in the first 25 minutes while the Reds could only manage a penalty from Lance.
For the first 35 minutes the Bulls looked to be in control both in defence and attack. Their defence especially was impressive – their line rushed up fast time after time and the pressure was telling on the Reds. When they did have the ball they couldn’t make any ground at all and never really threatened.
But the Reds got a key try just before halftime as they were able to break down the left-hand side and Timu squeezed through to score a critical score. This made it 10-14 at the break and the Reds were back in it.
The first score of the second half was always going to be important and it came quickly for the Reds as Toua finished off a lovely break in the loose from the debutant Nabuli.
From this point forwards it was all Reds. At about the 55 minute mark they had over 90% of territory and possession and it felt like just a matter of time until they turned this into points.
But to be fair to the Bulls their defence stayed strong and wave after wave of Reds attack came to nothing.
It took the Reds until the 76th minute to add more points as they finally said yes to a kick at goal and stretched their lead to six points.
The Bulls had a couple more attacks to try and score the required converted try but to be honest they never really looked like scoring and eventually the spilled the ball up and the Reds had the win.
There were almost two different Bull’s sides in this game. The one from the first half looked dangerous in attack and keen to run with the ball in hand. The one in the second half however seemed out of ideas and continuity.
They had to defend a lot and to be fair they did that very well but when they did get the ball back they either kicked it away poorly or ran with it ineffectively.
It was a great battle in the scrum with both sides fighting hard and winning the battle at different times. In the end though a lot of credit has to go to the relatively young and inexperienced Reds pack. They stood up very well against the big Bulls forwards and several times really tore them to pieces.
This win will give the Reds a lot of confidence in different areas. They were behind at half time and yet fought back to win. They had a slender lead that could have been overturned at any point but they held on well.
Their pack really performed well and some of their backs showed some great attacking skills including Lance who made some lovely runs at the right time. They are definitely a work in progress and won’t trouble the better teams but there’s plenty to be excited about.
The Bulls meanwhile will feel that this was an opportunity missed. They could have won this game and a win on the road is always valuable but they’ve let it slip.
No alarm bells yet for them but they need to make sure that this tour doesn’t go the same way as the Stormers where a good first match turns into a narrow loss and a winless tour.
Ruckin' Oaf
Guest
Dunno you may have noticed that on the weekend the Rebels looked a heck of a lot better against the Brumbies than the Reds did the week before. Still if the Reds keep 15 on the field next time they meet then who knows.
Ruckin' Oaf
Guest
Better ? Based on what ?
Cape Republic
Guest
Interested to see the Bulls playing in the gold shirts and blue shorts. Paying homage perhaps to their city football counterparts, Mamalodi Sundowns?
Ruckin Oaf
Guest
Hey Taylorman, Well so far the Reds have played 1 reasonably good team and been thrashed. Played 1 out of form team and ground out a win and last night they conceded a first half deficit to the Bulls at Suncorp for the first time in history. (before holding on for a win in the end) They may well go on to have a blinder of a season, but based on results to date reluctant congrats with reservations would seem the most appropriate response.
Taylorman
Guest
Next W’s coach? Thorn or Eddie? ?
Taylorman
Guest
Well I’m not sure as it was actually tongue in cheek but for those who came crashing down on thorn like a sledgehammer as to no doubts who caused the first loss, the meek reluctant congrats with reservations towards thorn on the last two wins sure is amusing.
Ruckin Oaf
Guest
Yup
Haz
Guest
Nabuli on the bench is a waste of a bench spot. Just off load him altogether. Surely there's better wingers in Queensland.
Haz
Guest
He's big and soft it's pathetic. My seven year old daughter plays tougher in her netball games. Nabuli should just go back to bag chucking. Doesn't even use his size. He needs to watch some Ben Tune footage.
Fox
Roar Guru
Great win and hats of Reds and Brad Thorn - work to do and a work in progress but some of these new players are extremely promising players and Reds pack is going well under Thorn and his coaching team. There is some real mongrel developing in that pack and from the bench.
Ruckin' Oaf
Guest
"A Reds with QC was never going to achieve those 2 wins............." This is starting to get into the realm of the delusional. The Reds with QC did beat the Brumbies at Suncorp last year and the Bulls have never won at Suncorp. Even then what are you saying - is QC the kryptonite to the supercoach Thorn ? That if QC was in the team Thorn just couldn't possibly coach them to a win ?
Ruckin' Oaf
Guest
Hey Taylorman - ot it could be that the Bulls have never beaten the Reds at Suncorp. But last night was as close as they've ever got and is the first time they've ever had a half time lead. Was that due to Thorn ?
Jamie
Guest
I should rephrase that the Bulls are not going to win in NZ so this was their best chance to get points on tour, much like the Stormers would have targeted the Tash game
Sam
Guest
Very enjoyable to have a second tight win. Now comes the test in Argentina against a pack that will test us to the limit. If we are lucky then we might squeak parity there. The more important thing is where are the tries going to come from next week. If nothing else welcome these games and all the ones against NZ teams for the steeling it will give the young pups. Don’t expect them to win, but to compete and learn lessons from the best. One thing Lance did last night that Quade would not have done was challenge that gap, go through it, and rumble downfield 20 metres. His tackling is also an undoubted asset for the Reds. The bench options are great with JP Smith giving no edge in front row. Hope his Afrikaans is enough to pick their line out calls. Similarly the fresh hooker coming on last night, with the added beef and pep, rocked the ball out of the second rowers hands to end the match. CFS should move back to wing. Correct me if I’m wrong but was he 12 or 13 last night? If the latter, the experiment should have been to keep Kerevi at 13 and put him inside him. Now the experiment must be extended to Nabuli on the bench. Credit to the Bulls. It was far more expansive rugby last night and they look to have unearthed another great thinking half back. Keep surviving and advancing Reds, and no swell heads ever
Dave_S
Guest
:) yes, credit where it’s due, he’s top shelf in that regard
Ruckin Oaf
Guest
"... Bulls would have targeted this game as “Easy” points ....." Really, considering what their record at Suncorp is like ?
Ruckin Oaf
Guest
My understanding is that the Bulls have never beaten the Reds at Suncorp.
Drongo
Guest
Was it Cheika when the Wallabies beat the ABs last year? Of course not. But the coach deserves some credit for a win. As you sarcastically posted last week, Quade could only improve this team. Congratulations to Thorn (grudgingly, for what he did to Quade) I said all along, if the team wins, Thorn will be considered successful. No one is happier than me to attend two winning home games in a row. Still some big question marks over the team though and the way they are playing. It’s a long season and we have only played one good team so far and we lost that by plenty.
PeterK
Roar Guru
The set piece and effort and attitude from the reds was impressive. Physicality quite good but not as hard hitting nor for as long as the rebels were. Reds defence a bit porous, a couple of soft tries, and need more work on creating tries. Overall though a significant improvement on last year.
PeterK
Roar Guru
Nabuli is outstandingly poor.