Everything that Brad Thorn has instilled in the Queensland Reds over his six years in charge was on display in his team’s magnificent fight in Hamilton.
Sports bookies predicted a one-sided rout yet no one told the Reds, who led 20-19 deep into this quarter-final before being quelled 29-20.
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The defence was so stout that the Reds kept their tryline intact until the stroke of half-time and outscored the sharpest attack in the competition by three tries-to-two.
You can never celebrate a loss but you can applaud character and rising to the occasion as the Reds did so admirably.
What did we learn?
1 HARRY WILSON’S RISING STOCKS
Throw a Kiwi opponent in front of Harry Wilson and you always seem to get the best from the Reds No.8.
Wilson produced one of his best efforts of the season against Super Rugby Pacific's top-seeded side.
His workrate was relentless…19 ball-carries and 19 tackles by one stats count.
On top of that came his excellent long ball when the Reds stormed out of defence in the early minutes when flanker Fraser McReight pinched a ball at the back of a Chiefs scrum.
Wilson scored a try himself and when the Reds needed a prayer ball at the death to stay alive he was the one who produced it only to see it squandered.
That’s the sort of display that earns a spot in the Wallabies’ 23 for their Test in Pretoria next month.
2 THE THORN ERA
The bare stats will record Brad Thorn as having 93 games in charge of the Reds for a success rate of 46 per cent with his 43 wins.
It won’t measure how he put pride back into the maroon jersey after making the call to ditch the red version full-time.
He drilled belief and fight-to-the-end spirit back into the Reds with his mantra of set piece strength, defending for the mate beside you and physicality.
He will leave a great bedrock for his successor to build on if the Reds can play catch-up in recruiting because it has been hum-drum for the past two seasons.
Veteran Fijian prop Peni Ravai is an exception. He tore into the Chiefs and made three short bursts in a hurry just before his 51-minute stint was up.
Skipper Tate McDermott got it right post-match when talking to Stan Sport.
“It’s Thorny’s last game. He’s been a trooper for us. I’d just like to say thank you. He’s been with me and a lot of the boys for the whole journey, the full six years,” McDermott said.
“What he’s done to turn this club around is phenomenal. He’s a proud man and I hope we did a bit in this game to put a smile on his face.”
The Reds deserve great credit for acknowledging another farewell. The players wore black armbands to honour the late Wayne Smith's contribution to rugby journalism in Queensland over 52 years.
Smith would have been proud of the performance and might even have found cause for his traditional desk thump and shout in those tense final 15 minutes.
3 LOCKED AND LOADED
Locks Angus Blyth and Ryan Smith both unleashed big hits in the first half when the Reds set the tone in defence.
The non-Wallaby pair played at the pitch they need to every game. Smith contributed 21 tackles and Blyth 22. Only workaholic flanker Fraser McReight (28) got through more.
The Reds defence was so effective because the players kept turning up for each other, dropped ball errors were minimised to limit breakout attacks by the Chiefs and players like winger Josh Flook pulled off trysavers.
Centre Filipo Daugunu played out of position but his intensity on defence set a standard until his unfortunate exit with an arm fracture from his final tackle.
4 SULI SIZZLE
Winger Suliasi Vunivalu showed some of the big moment class that he was signed for.
He completed the early try off a fine James O’Connor cutout pass but his second was even better.
There’s no way the 2022 Vunivalu would have been sniffing around the back of a ruck for a chance. His quick pick-and-go became the try that helped nudge the Reds ahead 20-19.
5 GOALKICKING
You expect Damian McKenzie to run you ragged.
You don’t necessarily imagine him kicking seven-from-seven to boot you from the competition.
Reds sniper Tom Lynagh recovered well with a long-range penalty goal and a sideline conversion but his three early misses to leave seven points in the ether were costly.
