Reds 13 Brumbies 52
BRISBANE - The Brumbies taught bumbling Queensland a lesson in attacking precision to keep their Super 14 finals hopes alive with a 52-13 thumping at Suncorp Stadium last night.
The ACT side continued their 14-year dominance over the Reds with a 14th victory from 15 Super matches and gained a
vital bonus point in scoring seven tries to two.
The win moves the red-hot Brumbies to provisional joint fourth on the table midway through round 12 on 32 points - equal with the NSW Waratahs and Crusaders.
Veteran flanker George Smith was superb for the visitors who easily won the breakdown battle to bounce back from last week's record 56-7 loss to the pace-setting Hurricanes with their highest-ever score against the Reds.
While it was a wonderful night for the Brumbies, it was disastrous, even from before the first whistle, for Queensland.
Playmaker Berrick Barnes was a late scratching after suffering a groin strain in the warm-up to put a major dent in their hopes of a first successive win in three years.
The competition battlers also lost skipper James Horwill in the second half with an ankle problem which puts him in doubt for Friday night's match with the Crusaders, while backs Mark McLinden and Digby Ioane were also injured.
Hooker Sean Hardman had little to celebrate in his record-breaking 135th appearance for his state as rival rake and ex-Red Stephen Moore tasted a sweet victory against his old side.
Fellow former Queenslanders Gene Fairbanks and Mitchell Chapman, who combined for the first try in the 23rd minute, were also impressive for the Brumbies as were lock Peter Kimlin, two-two try skipper Stephen Hoiles and prop Ben Alexander.
Without Barnes, Queensland lacked the tactical smarts to make the most of their opportunities while they also lacked the urgency and intensity of the previous week's upset of the Blues.
Horwill admitted the Brumbies, who effectively attacked the inside channel, came out with more desire.
"We just didn't work on the inside (in defence) and the Brumbies exploited it," he said.
Ahead 10-3 after half an hour, the Brumbies blew the game open with two tries in five minutes as Kimlin set up Hoiles before scoring the softest of tries himself by waltzing past Brando Va'aulu and Horwill for a 24-3 lead.
Rising halfback Will Genia gave the 19,346-strong home crowd some hope on the stroke of half-time with a 25m solo try and then darted over again just after the break to close the score to 24-13.
But the Brumbies hit back immediately with Alexander storming over from 10m in the ineffective tackle of Van Humphries to secure the bonus point and kill off the Reds.
- AAP