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Having taken over a disjointed Wallabies side after the debacle that was RWC 2023 in France. That night in Lyon was tough as a Wallabies supporter; we were decimated 40-6 by the Welsh after coming off a 14-22 loss to Fiji. This was the team he inherited, but Kiwi Joe Schmidt has bled 27 fresh faces into this national team to build ahead of RWC 2027, where Les Kiss takes over. Being in the crowd…

This weekend, the first round of the Nations Championship begins: North v South. The Northern Hemisphere comprises the 6 Nations teams, i.e., France, Ireland, England, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. The Southern Hemisphere consists of teams in the Rugby Championship, i.e., South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, and Argentina, plus Japan* and Fiji** (*NB: Japan is classed as a Southern Hemisphere…

📅 NEXT HOME GAME – 11 JULY Mark it in the calendar, this is set to be a massive day at Chipsy Wood Oval. We’ll be hosting Sunnybank in the annual Damien “Dunga” Drew Memorial Match, a special day to honour a Souths legend and celebrate everything he meant to our club. With a full day of rugby, great atmosphere around the grounds, and the Wallabies game streamed live on the big screen in the…

June is a sad month at Brisbanerugby as we are reminded of the passing of Wayne Keith Smith, one of the great rugby union scribes of our time. A great ambassador of St. Laurence’s College (SLOB 1970), Smith learnt his trade in the era of typewriters and landlines (Smithy was renowned for filing stories from public telephone boxes in suburban Brisbane, usually upon leaving a sporting venue). The…

Former All Black on the Pathway as Future Wallabies Coach

The last home game for the Queensland Reds saw them play an uptempo match against Fijian Drua. 15,623 turned up to Suncorp and were thoroughly entertained. A comfortable 21-12 lead at halftime was quickly gobbled up by the Drua with two tries in 8 minutes by Manasa Mataele to put them ahead 24-21. The Reds were reinvigorated to score 4 more tries for a bonus point 45-24 win, lifting them to 5th…

Not since 2018 in Sydney have both our men’s and women’s Sevens teams won the HSBC 7s Round. This time in Valladolid, Spain, the penultimate round, ahead of Bordeaux next weekend, both our sides picked up Gold Medals. Beating the Top of the Table Blitzboks 26-19 shows a commitment our men’s team has been lacking. We’ve come to expect our women to do well, and their 27-14 win over the USA in the…

For over 60 years, the rivalry between St. Laurence’s College and Marist Brothers Ashgrove has been intence. This afternoon was no exception going down 17-15. We opened the score with an excellent try on the left flank, only to see our 5-0 lead evaporate 5 minutes later to the Blue & Gold. It was the story of the day, leading for the large part of the match. With time almost up we defended…

The Western Force has handed the Reds another close loss three weeks in a row last night in Perth, 19-14. What more do the Queenslanders have to do to cement their spot in the top 6? Discarded Reds players in the west outmuscle their former side with another technical performance proving the Suncorp thrashing wasn’t a blip. Saint Laurence’s old boy, John Bryant, replacing Fraser McReight, bumbled…

On a balmy 23-degrees celcius afternoon of early autumn at the University of Queensland campus in St Lucia, a modest crowd watched a significant step in the journey of Brisbanerugby’s favourite son, Tate McDermott. In a flawless first-half performance for the Red Heavies, McDermott scored a try in classic style from a quick penalty tap. The boy is back, after the Reds’ second loss to the Western…

The Reds had their biggest home crowd of the season, with 14,438 of the faithful turning out for another cliffhanger two weeks in a row. Having lost the week before in super-point to the Blues during Super Round in Christchurch, the crowd were on their feet inside 10 minutes when Lachie Andersen showed what we had been missing since Round 4 with his return on the left flank, crashing over in the…

About a 20-minute train trip east of the transit station of Namba in Osaka, we find the rugby town of Hanazono. The Hanazono Rugby Stadium 🏟️ was established in 1929, the first stadium in Japan specifically designed for rugby. I got off the Kintetsu-Nara Line at Higashi Hanazono. I made my way to the stadium, about a 15-minute walk away, past shops and restaurants supporting the local team known…

After being blown out of the park in their last two outings, Les Kiss’ men finally showed the Suncorp faithful that they are genuine Super Rugby Pacific contenders. Having the Hurricanes put 50+ points on them at the Cake-tin, and then the Western Force a further 40+ at home, the Reds’ dressing room was a lot happier place to be last night after defeating last year’s premiers, the Crusaders…