The St.George Queensland Reds will host the Hurricanes at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday afternoon as they attempt to cause an Anzac boil over against the current Asteron Life Super Rugby leaders.
The Reds are coming off a stirring 18-17 win over the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein and will look to throw the form guide out the window in the Trans-Tasman clash this weekend. Last round, Reds bolter James O’Connor had a standout performance, putting a string of injury concerns behind him to set up two tries in his best game of the season.
Teammate Ed Quirk said the win in South Africa will give them a lot of confidence heading into Round 11. “It’s been a tough campaign, for us especially, and to get a win over in South Africa is massive for any team…the Hurricanes are coming off a loss over the weekend and that's going to hurt them.”
Queensland captain James Slipper is keen to use the Anzac spirit as additional motivation when they take on the Hurricanes, who lost their first match of the season against the NSW Waratahs last Saturday.
“Anzac is close to all Australians and New Zealanders. It’s a special time of the year where you can look back on and appreciate the sacrifices that were made for the greater good of Australia."
“Especially playing on Sunday against a New Zealand team, the Hurricanes, it’s a good way to represent the jersey and to have 100 years of Anzac History printed on the jersey means a lot to the boys…it’s a small token of our appreciation."
However, Slipper is under no illusion that Sunday’s fixture will be a tough test for the Reds and said a chance to play in front of their home fans will only help to fuel the fire.
“We do have a long turn around and we are playing on Sunday so there’s no excuses for being under prepared. I think the way we ended the tour with the win was something that we needed and I think the boys are pretty excited to get back and play in front of our Suncorp fans.”
Queensland Rugby Union today announced it is teaming up with the Australian Defence Force to commemorate ANZAC Day and the 100th anniversary of the ANZAC Gallipoli landings with a specially-designed St.George Queensland Reds jersey.
The Reds match jerseys, featuring the Rising Sun emblem of the Australian Defence Force, will be auctioned following the game to raise money for the Mates4Mates charity.
Fans can catch all the action live on FOX SPORTS 2 & 2HD from 4:05pm AEST on Sunday 26 April and tickets are available via http://bit.ly/1anZqoQ.
