Rugby: Amid the anguish, Reds look to kick-start late challenge

The Lions celebrate victory while Quade Cooper rues his missed drop goal.

On his knees with head in hand - a shattered Quade Cooper's reaction to his potential match-winning 30m drop-goal attempt being charged down on fulltime said it all on Friday night.

Cynics could also say it represented the Queensland Reds' 2015 Super Rugby season following their gut-wrenching 18-17 loss to the Lions at Suncorp Stadium.

But it is what Cooper did next that gave credit to Reds coach Richard Graham's bold call that Queensland, who have a one win, five loss record, could still make the finals.

Cooper dusted himself off and began practising dropped goals from the same position over and over as his heartbroken team-mates trudged off.

It remains to be seen whether the Reds do the same and pick themselves off the canvas - but besieged coach Graham sounded like a believer.

"I still think that the semifinals are achievable for us," Graham said ahead of a tough string of three away games including a two-match South African leg. "The more time we spend together in this next three weeks that we're away and playing, we as a team will be better for that."

Wallabies first five-eighths Cooper, who had been struggling with a collarbone complaint, was one of six players returning to the Reds line-up on Friday night - and it showed.

He was solid in his first game since the Wallabies' 2014 spring tour and James O'Connor showed flashes of brilliance on debut on the wing.

Queensland also provided glimpses of their much-discussed but seldom-sighted new running game plan in the lead-up to centre Samu Kerevi's 68th-minute try that gave them a short-lived 17-15 lead.

In the end, Queensland's lack of cohesion was exploited by the Lions (3-4) who sealed their third win in four games - all away - after victories over the Blues in Auckland and Rebels in Melbourne.

However, skipper James Slipper agreed the real Reds would emerge in the coming weeks as more returning players Liam Gill and Karmichael Hunt (suspension) gelled.

"We had a fair few players coming back and it took us a bit of time to adjust," Slipper said. "It's a step forward but it [18-17 result] is still really gutting."

The Reds will take on the Rebels on Friday, with with both teams desperate for a win after the Melbourne side went down 36-12 to the Hurricanes on Friday night. It came on the back of tight losses to the Waratahs, Brumbies and Lions.

Rebels coach Tony McGahan was bitterly disappointed his side couldn't capitalise on 57 per cent of possession and 134 runs to the Hurricanes' 98.

"We need to turn it around," McGahan said. "We've lost three really close games at home and we need to make sure that we front up at home. We need to make sure that we get a result."

- AAP