Reds desperate to get the better of the Brumbies for the first time in three years

If the Queensland Reds want to host a match in this year’s Super Rugby Pacific finals series, a win over the ACT Brumbies on Saturday night looms as a must.

If ever there was a time for the Queensland Reds to end their run of losses to the ACT Brumbies, it’s on Saturday night in Canberra.

The Brumbies are chasing a fifth successive defeat of the Reds, who haven’t beaten the ACT outfit in Super Rugby since April 2022.

Another Brumbies win this weekend at GIO Stadium would all but end Queensland’s hopes of hosting a match in the six-team Super Rugby Pacific finals series.

“We’ve been on the wrong side of ledger (against the Brumbies) for a number of years now,” Reds captain Tate McDermott said.

“It’s do-or-die if we want a home final – it’s as simple as that for us. We’ve got to stick to the process, and we’ve got to do it well.

“We’ve got to take their crowd out of the game. It’s a smaller stadium so you can feel that their fans are on it. The Brumbies chant goes up and you see just how much playing at home means to them.

“They’ve got a really good win record there, but we can’t really look into that stuff. We’ve got to make sure that we’re doing what we can control, and that’s being physical in right parts of the field.”

Tate McDermott and the Queensland Reds are hoping to end their run of losses to the ACT Brumbies. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

The Reds’ preparations for the match were disrupted on Friday when their morning flight to Canberra was cancelled.

They were instead forced to have their captain’s run at Ballymore, instead of Gio Stadium, before boarding a later flight to the nation’s capital.

“A lot of the boys have been there, seen the stadium and they know what to expect when playing in Canberra,” McDermott said, playing down any affect the changes had on his side.

“It (training at Ballymore) was a good opportunity for us to just focus on ourselves more and get through our plays without anyone watching.”

Halfback McDermott backed 21-year-old Harry McLaughlin-Phillips to perform well at flyhalf as a replacement for Tom Lynagh, who will miss Saturday night’s match due to concussion protocols.

“There was a period there where he wasn’t getting a lot of game time but the way he was training is just a testament to the bloke he is,” McDermott said of McLaughlin-Phillips.

“He has been working hard behind the scenes. He’s had a couple of cracks at it now.

“He has worked hard on his kicking game and his distribution’s been great as well, but a big strength of his is running and we want to see that out in force against the Brumbies.”

Originally published as Reds desperate to get the better of the Brumbies for the first time in three years