Reds need to step up their recruitment with players such as Angus Cottrell, Joe Tomane

WESTERN Force flanker Angus Cottrell must be high on the potential shopping list of recruits to beef up the ailing Reds next season.

Angus Cottrell looks to break a tackle by Jurgen Visser in the Force’s match against the Bulls.

HARD-EDGED Western Force flanker Angus Cottrell must be high on the potential shopping list of recruits to beef up the ailing Reds next season after slipping out of Brisbane almost unnoticed in late 2011.

The point has been reached, actually it arrived a month ago, where Reds management have to soberly assess the deficiencies of the current squad and get aggressive with some big signing targets.

Sure, sloppy execution and back-to-back errors playing under pressure have killed the Reds repeatedly but you are living under a rock if you believe that is all that needs fixing.

The top class core at the Reds needs a few more turbos urgently.

Signing a bullocking backrower, a tackle-smashing outside back and adding depth at lock with a bruising enforcer type are a good place to start.

News_Image_File: Cottrell looks to offload the ball while being tackled by Jurgen Visser.

Unfortunately, ACT Brumbies winger Joe Tomane is tied to the Canberra club until the end of next year but a finisher of his ilk would be ideal.

No.8 Jake Schatz and blindside flanker Ed Quirk are fine servants of the Reds but they have become increasingly similar in their output ... industrious, smart, excellent lineout options but too little footwork and tackle-breaking thrust as ball-runners.

Cottrell’s dimensions of 105kg and 191cm put him in the same size range. The key discussion for Reds staff will be over whether he brings something extra to the table.

Certainly, anyone who can stop NSW Waratahs hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau in his tracks as the catalyst for Nick Cummins’ 80m intercept try recently has big plusses. He ripped into the big Bulls pack with even more relish on the weekend.

News_Rich_Media: James Horwill discusses the Reds’ loss to the Hurricanes, criticising his side’s one-on-one tackling.

Intriguingly, it was Richard Graham, as the then-coach of the Force, who spied Cottrell playing for Wests in Brisbane club rugby in 2011 and enticed him to Perth.

“Raw toughness and fantastic attitude” were what Graham sized up then. It might be that he looks at chasing him for a second time ... for the Reds.

Cottrell’s father Nev Jnr played for Queensland as did his proud 86-year-old grandfather “Notchy”, the oldest living Wallaby captain, so the Brisbane link is powerful.

Queensland Rugby Union chief executive Jim Carmichael was in the desolate Reds dressing room in Wellington immediately after the 35-21 loss in James Horwill’s 100th game last Saturday night.

News_Image_File: Reds coach Richard Graham has received the backing of QRU chief executive Jim Carmichael.

“I saw blokes who were passionate about what the Reds jersey means to them and they were in pain. They have high expectations of themselves and the character they show from here to respond will be the mark of them,” Carmichael said.

“Richard Graham is the Reds long-term coach. He’s a teacher (of rugby) and the right man for the job.”

That unwavering support shows that no one at the Reds is panicking. Players aren’t going to be sacked and hired willy-nilly either. An overdue win with some overdue polish is needed on all fronts.