The Queensland Reds thrashed the Western Force 57-5 to register an away victory with the most points scored and leapfrog the Brumbies into first place Super Rugby AU log. The Reds outscored their opponents by eight tries to one to secure the emphatic victory.
FULL-TIME | The Reds run over the Force.
Follow here: https://t.co/jP21o91zwe#FORvRED#SuperRugbyAU #SuperRugby25years pic.twitter.com/NbSce734gg— Super Rugby/TRC (@SuperRugby) August 21, 2020
They led 15-0 at halftime.
The Western Force were looking for their first win of the campaign after five straight defeats, while the Reds needed a win to keep their title hopes alive.
The hosts attacked early on in the first half as they looked for a gap through the steely Reds’ defence, but they couldn’t breach it on two occasions.
The visitors thought they had taken the lead after prop, Taniela Tupou, touched down after receiving a pass from winger, Filipo Daungunu, but the try was disallowed after the TMO adjudged a knock-on in the lead up.
However, the Reds’ relentless pressure paid off minutes later. Daugunu burst through the gap and touched down after an inside pass from James O’Connor. The Force struggled to get out of their half with the Reds launching attack after attack and Daugunu scored his second try following a series of passes by his team mates and an offload by Bryce Hegarty.
The Reds led 15-0 at halftime after a second successful penalty kick by O’Connor. The hosts were much improved in the second half and struck first. Their pack powered over for Andrew Ready to score a try to reduce the deficit.
But things went from bad to worse for the home team after Kieran Longbottom was shown a yellow card for an infringement during a scrum. The Reds capitalised scoring three more tries to stretch their lead to 36-5.
Scrum-half, Tate Dermott, scored a brace in the process. His second try was a brilliant solo effort side-stepping a number of defenders before showing his opponents a clean pair of heels.
There was just no stopping the Reds’ juggernaut as they scored two more tries with Hegarty seeing a gap and bursting through to score a try. Tuaina Tualima scored their eighth try and O’Connor’s seventh successful penalty kick sealed a 57-5 victory.
Super Rugby AU | Force v Reds – Rd 8 Highlights
The Queensland @Reds_Rugby moved to the summit of Super Rugby AU on Friday night, earning a bonus point against a hapless and still-winless @westernforce on the Gold Coast.#SuperRugby #SuperRugbyAU #FORvRED pic.twitter.com/p4xnPYkudz
— Super Rugby/TRC (@SuperRugby) August 21, 2020
