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Brad Thorn, a former All Blacks lock, pictured before coaching the Reds in the Super Rugby Australia grand final, has yet to decide his future.
Brad Thorn will take stock before re-committing to the Queensland Reds after his exciting young team fell painfully short in a tense Super Rugby AU final on Saturday night.
The Reds beat the odds to push the Brumbies to the limit before succumbing 28-23 in a frenzied final in Canberra, having lost by 15 points midway through the second half.
Undone by poor discipline and having been reduced to 14 men for 10 minutes following the sinful Filipo Daugunu for a lifting tackle early in the second half, the Reds appeared to be gone after losing young wing Jordan Petaia and forward Lukhan. Salakai-Loto to injuries.
SPORT OF HEAVEN
Noah Lolesio stars in the Brumbies title win.
“But the guys showed what they have shown all along, which is their ticker and stamina,” Thorn said after a contentious attempt to get the Reds to block Angus Blyth in the 64th minute and they ended up in the stands at GIO Stadium.
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Mark Kolbe / Getty Images
Fraser McReight of the Reds is tackled by Folau Fainga’a of the Brumbies during the Brumbies’ victory in the Super Rugby Australia final in Canberra.
“His determination to get back in the game was pretty close to the end, wasn’t it?
“But, at the end of the day, it’s not much fun to lose the grand finals, is it?”
“We came here to do a job and we were close, but we didn’t get there.”
Still, the Reds have come a long way since Thorn took office before the 2018 season and, intending to preside over a cultural overhaul, rebuilt the team with old-fashioned hard work and some controversial lineup calls.
Cameron Spencer / Getty Images
Angus Scott-Young of the Reds tries to defend a Brumbies tackler.
The international double, winner of the Rugby World Cup, NRL and main hero of State of Origin was widely condemned for releasing the enigmatic playmaker Quade Cooper and also letting Karmichael Hunt and James Slipper leave for disciplinary reasons.
But Thorn’s tough decisions are finally starting to pay off, with the Reds emerging as one of the most exciting teams in Super Rugby.
Led maturely by wing Liam Wright, the Reds boast a world-class group of forwards that also includes Super Rugby MVP AU Taniela Tupou and future Wallabies rowers Harry Wilson and Fraser McReight.
Thorn’s lifeline for James O’Connor has led to the rebirth of the once savage son of Australian rugby, while several other running backs are in the crosshairs of Wallabies freshman coach Dave Rennie.
But when asked if he would stay another year to continue rebuilding, Thorn was shy.
Cameron Spencer / Getty Images
Folau Fainga’a of the Brumbies (R) and Noah Lolesio of the Brumbies await full time in their final big win over the Reds.
“I’ve been worrying about this at the moment,” he said.
“But now that this has come to an end, I’m sure there will be talks and such.
“But it’s not something to talk about right now, buddy. We just got out of a pretty big game.”
