Brumbies-Reds thriller shows there's life in Australian rugby

The coronavirus crowd of 1500 was treated to a genuine rugby contest. Maul tries, long-range tries, penalty goals and a brutal contest for every player involved.

Mack Hansen sealed the win three minutes into injury time when he nailed a 40-metre penalty attempt with just his second kick in Super Rugby.

You could've heard a pin drop at Canberra Stadium, and not just because the crowd was spread out and adhering to social-distancing rules.

That's the sort of drama Australian rugby needs. That's the sort of ding-dong game fans have been craving.

The young Reds were superb, going on a second-half rampage to move to a six-point led with six minutes left.

They ran whenever they got a chance, scoring two tries to snatch the lead and finishing the game with almost 500 run metres.

The Brumbies ran the ball more often, but couldn't find the same gaps the Reds exploited, so they turned to the rolling maul for three tries and Hansen's after-the-siren shot to secure a 22-20 win.

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"We'll learn a lot from that. A lot of good things and some learnings," said Brumbies coach Dan McKellar.

Captain Allan Alaalatoa said: "It would have been a good game to watch. Not many kicks in play - they held the ball for many phases and so did we. I'm just glad we could come away with the win there."

The two Australian games this weekend have finished in a "Super Time" win to the Melbourne Rebels on Friday night and an 83-minute thriller on Saturday.

We've got a season on our hands. Many had pencilled the Brumbies is as the 2020 champions given they've won all but one game this year. But there are signs of life and that should excite fans.

"Aussie rugby is on the rise. It's great to have a competition to play in and these derbies are producing some good footy. The players are enjoying them as well," said Reds captain Liam Wright.

It's a shame there are COVID-19 crowd restrictions because the Brumbies are playing the sort of winning rugby fans love to see.

They have won seven in a row this year, a streak stretching back to February 22 and across two different competitions.

It equals the longest single-season streak in the club's history as they launch a rugby resurgence in the capital.

The Brumbies haven't won eight in a row since a combined streak from 2004-05 and the best streak in the club's history is nine from the 2001-02 seasons.

They're also firing at home, winning 12 of the past 13 matches at Canberra Stadium. They'll be hoping more than 1500 can attend when they're back next.

The Reds dominated the second half, but a late penalty allowed the Brumbies to steal the match. The Reds were penalised for ruck infringement deep into injury time.

"The last play? [It was a] debatable [decision] from my point of view. But the pressure's on everyone," said Reds coach Brad Thorn.

"There are 80 minutes of footy and a decision was made there ... We've owned it as a team."

The Reds will bank images of the Brumbies' celebrations and use them as motivation for when the teams meet in Brisbane on September 5, the last round before the finals.

"Today wasn't a grand final," a blunt Thorn said. "There was a big celebration out there ... but what is it? Fourth game in.

"We're definitely disappointed, but we'll take our point or whatever it is, head back and prepare for the next team."

You can set your watch to it. ACT Brumbies mauls, Folau Fainga'a tries and the predictable complaining that follows.

The drums will be beating loudly this week after Fainga'a continued his Super try-scoring spree. The hooker now has 24 tries in 37 games and Brumbies legend Joe Roff must be getting nervous about his record.

But the talk won't be about Fainga'a's feat, or the way the Brumbies have become maul experts. It will be about trying to ban it from the game because it's "unattractive".

The debate has become tired over the years. It has been fuelled by the Brumbies being able to perfect their formation, making it an almost impenetrable weapon.

"Even as I as a dedicated forward I do get a little frustrated," former Wallabies skipper Phil Kearns said in commentary. "The Brumbies ... I love are the running Brumbies. But if they're going to score that way, they'll score that way."

It's a bugbear for teams who cannot stop it. But changing the maul rule? Please. It's hardly the biggest issue facing rugby at the moment.

The Brumbies ran the ball more times than the Reds in the first half and turned down a shot at goal five times to instead go for a lineout option.

The lineout is a 50-50 opportunity, so why the complaining? Would we really rather see teams take a shot at goal to take the points. Brumbies fans cheered for the maul in the first half, and when the home side trailed by six points with time running out. Hopefully they aren't drowned out by critics.

The Reds celebrated what they thought was a try just before half-time when they turned defence into attack, going almost the length of the field before Jordan Petaia crossed the line.

It was all to no avail. Referee Nic Berry got a glimpse of a replay on the big screen and stopped James O'Connor's conversion attempt.

There was a clear high shot on Tom Wright before the Reds got the ball, but it was four phases before the try. In the end it was the right call. But should we go back that far to check?

AT A GLANCE

ACT BRUMBIES 22 (Folau Fainga'a 2, Connal McInerney tries; Bayley Kuenzle 2 conversions; Mack Hansen penalty) bt QUEENSLAND REDS 20 (Harry Wilson, Angus Scott-Young tries; James O'Connor 2 conversions, 2 penalties) at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night. Referee: Nic Berry. Crowd: 1500