Rugby Union: Crooked throws cost Reds hooker Alex Mafi his place

Perhaps the more significant change for the Reds comes with the choice of a replacement hooker.

Hooker Alex Mafi has had to surrender his place because of wayward lineout throwing

Jordan Petaia returns to the Queensland side following the death of his father last week as the Reds prepare to take on the in-form Melbourne Rebels at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday night, but perhaps the more significant change comes with the choice of replacement hooker.

The Reds lineout throwing has been little short of diabolical in the recent matches against the Brumbies and Waratahs, although clearly other elements of their set piece are underperforming as well. Alex Mafi has more than justified his selection with his work around the field, but until he can deliver a level of certainty with his throwing, he has been forced to surrender his place on the bench.

Into his position comes Jethro Felemi, who represented the Blues and also Auckland Under-18 before playing for North Harbour in the Mitre 10 Cup in 2016. The Tongan-born, NZ-raised hooker came to Australia in 2018 and played for the Queensland Country side in the NRC while also representing GPS in Premier Rugby.

He moves into the Queensland match-day 23 alongside GPS clubmate, loosehead Jack Straker, who takes over from Dane Zander in the starting side after he was ruled out for the remainder of the season following a knee injury in training this week.

The starting side sees Petaia return to the right wing, pushing Jock Campbell back to fullback, while Fraser McReight regains his place in the starting backrow in place of Angus Scott-Young and Tate McDermott takes over at halfback from Samoan international Scott Maloula.

“It’s a good boost for everyone having Jordy back,” said Reds coach Brad Thorn. “We’re a family here at the Reds and he’s a part of that. We’re a tight group and we’re all supporting him and his family.

“We’re gutted for Dane. He’s been playing good footy recently. We’ve got Jethro coming in for us. He’s played a fair bit of footy including in the Mitre 10 Cup with North Harbour and also for Queensland Country in the NRC last year.”

The Reds and the Rebels fought out the first Supertime in Super Rugby AU history when they met in the first round, but nothing could separate the two sides, who finished at 18-all.

“The Rebels are a quality team. They’ll be full of confidence after their performance over the Brumbies. We went 90 minutes with them last time down at Brookvale and we’re expecting another tough match on Saturday night.”