Reds gain revenge over Brumbies

Unbeaten Queensland Reds exacted revenge over ACT Brumbies with a stirring 40-38 comeback victory Saturday in a re-match of last year’s Super Rugby AU grand final.

The blockbuster battle at GIO Stadium was a high-octane contest, with the Reds starting slowly and trailed by 15 points early in the second half before capitalising on a depleted Brumbies to storm to their third straight victory to open the season.

Jordan Petaia scored a remarkable try in the dying minutes to level the contest, as he desperately managed to get his hand on the ball after chasing down a grubber kick.

Captain James O’Connor calmly slotted the conversion to give his team their first lead of the game as they shortly after celebrated a famous victory.

The Reds are the only unbeaten side in the five-team competition, while the Brumbies are 3-1 after four rounds.

“We let ourselves down in that first half and just had to stay in the game,” O’Connor said.

“We know we can cut teams apart so we just had to stay in it. It was a great showcase for rugby.”

Brumbies stand-in captain Tom Cusack rued the fadeout.

“We couldn’t exit from our half, which shot us in the foot in the end,” he said.

Despite the daunting challenge of playing in Canberra, where the Brumbies had won 18 of their last 19 games, the Reds eventually overwhelmed their shorthanded opponents who were without suspended captain Allan Alaalatoa and injured duo James Slipper and Connal McInerney.

The Reds were out for revenge after a heart-breaking 28-23 defeat in last year’s decider and also keen to make a statement against the competition’s powerhouse team.

But the well-drilled Brumbies stunned their rivals by dominating possession and territory to race out to a 17-0 lead in the opening 15 minutes.

In an early onslaught, the Brumbies looked to go wide at every opportunity and it paid dividends when a brilliant pass from Andy Muirhead setup Peter Samu in the right corner.

Moments later, Folau Fainga’a aggressively broke off the rolling maul to score a try and further pump up the boisterous crowd.

The exuberant Reds’ vaunted firepower was non-existent but they finally hit the scoreboard in the 18th minute when O’Connor nailed a penalty kick to calm down his side.

It ignited the Reds, who reduced the deficit to four points after rugby league convert Suliasi Vunivalu scored his first try in the competition in his second game.

The Brumbies, however,  proved formidable frontrunners but were handicapped by injuries to Cusack and Tom Ross.

They struggled to fend off a late rally from a fast-finishing Reds, who were superbly led by tight head prop Taniela Tupou, as the margin reduced to one point with 10 minutes left.

But Issak Fines responded with a try after a spectacular run on the right corner as the Brumbies seemingly had done enough until the late heroics from Petaia.

Both teams wore special jerseys to mark the inaugural First Nations round, which aims to spread awareness and celebrate Indigenous culture.

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