The Queensland Reds produced two late fightback tries before being denied 31-21 in a titanic tussle against the Chiefs at Suncorp Stadium tonight.
Even when down to 14 men, replacement winger Treyvon Pritchard scored his first Super Rugby Pacific try with some dynamic footwork to close the scores to 24-21 with just over five minutes to play.
It replicated the bold Reds' play with 15 minutes to go when No.8 Harry Wilson delivered a superb, no-look pass out the back of his right hand to send flanker Joe Brial away. That tightened the scores to 17-14.
On both occasions, replacement flyhalf Carter Gordon had ripped long passes wide to create the chances.
The Reds could not find a go ahead score as hard as they tried.
"We have things to work on but heart, soul and guts are in place. I'm not surprised at those traits...it's who we are," Reds Head Coach Les Kiss said.
Kiss said the Pritchard footwork, to shed a defender when seemingly cornered on the sideline, was a classic winger's finish.
"He didn't have much room to move, did he? We are very aware of what Trey is capable of. He's shown some of his X-factor but even more impressive is how he wants to learn from those senior players around him," Kiss added.
It was not to be for the Reds on a night where emotions ran high in the crowd, particularly on half-time when lock Seru Uru was ruled not to have grounded the ball when over the tryline.
The Reds trailed 10-7 at the break as a result.
The Reds had opened the night with an outstanding try after seven minutes. Harry McLaughlin-Phillips took a well-timed pass out the back from centre Hunter Paisami. The determined flyhalf poked his body through the defence with a surge, freed his arms and put winger Lachie Anderson over.
It was the start of a strong return from Anderson, back in the side after missing seven games while repairing a dislocated wrist.
The Chiefs equalised with a Wallace Sititi try. It was a sign of respect from the Chiefs that they twice took shots at penalty goal when awarded them on attack in the first half.
"Regardless of whether we have 15 or 14 on the field, we are always able to lift," Reds skipper Fraser McReight said.
"The boys dug really deep."
When asked if the Reds could take heart from going so close against the Blues and Chiefs in recent weeks, McReight was adamant.
"Definitely. We said from Round One that we wanted to be playing our best footy at the end of the season and I think we are trending in the right direction. We have an opportunity to finish the regular rounds on a great note and go on a run in the last three games.
"We're not scared of any team. We love the challenge of versing the top teams."
Chiefs Head Coach Jono Gibbes gave full credit to the quality of the contest.
"It was a heavyweight contest. The Reds are a gutsy team, tenacious around their defence and they came back at us so we had to find more," Gibbes said.
The physical contest was no bigger than at inside centre where Wallaby Hunter Paisami and All Black Quinn Tupaea were at full intensity.
The Reds will regroup for a match against the Western Force in Perth next Saturday, May 16.
CHIEFS 31
Tries: Samisoni Taukei'aho 2, Wallace Sititi 2
Conversions: Damian McKenzie 4
Penalty Goal: Damian McKenzie
Def
QUEENSLAND REDS 21
Tries: Lachie Anderson, Joe Brial, Treyvon Pritchard
Conversions: Louis Werchon 2, Harry McLaughlin-Phillips
Half-time: Chiefs 10-Reds 7
Venue: Suncorp Stadium
Crowd: 14,438
