Fraser McReight hasn't got time to worry about the upcoming Lions Tour or his next contract when there's a pack of hungry Reds backrowers on his heels.
McReight, 25, was among the Wallabies best through 2024 despite missing a chunk of The Rugby Championship (broken hand) but his playing future remains uncertain with the flanker yet to confirm his next contract beyond 2025.
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Speaking to media on Tuesday, McReight says he's not focused on contract speculation or Lions selection with a Queensland matchday squad to crack ahead of the upcoming Super Rugby Pacific season.
The Reds are already spoilt for loose forwards with McReight and Wallaby captains Liam Wright and Harry Wilson holding incumbency but there's international quality across the board with Test utility Seru Uru and Australia XV tourists John Bryant and Joe Brial jostling for position.
That pack gets ever tighter if one considers the versatility of incoming lock-six options - and Wallabies - Lukhan Salakai-Loto and Josh Canham.
"We've got a pretty stacked back row with JB, Brially, even Seru can mix it with the second rows there, so we've got so much competition and it starts at training," McReight told reporters on Tuesday.
"The coaches are going to put it on us from the get go and you've got to earn your stripes … so for us, it's about getting competitive with the younger boys, being it on the field or at training. When the quality goes up, you tend to play better."
"For me, that (contract) will take care of itself if I'm playing my best rugby and doing my best personally right here.
"You try not to think six, seven months ahead. Right now we're day one so for me it's trying to get some fitness back, get some rugby back. We've got a great tour in two weeks and we'll play some exciting teams up north."
McReight returns to Ballymore fresh from a Wallabies satellite camp that included a young man yet to even taste Super Rugby Pacific - Reds teammate Massimo de Lutiis.
The young tighthead prop was a surprise inclusion in Joe Schmidt's January squad but showed enough during the two-day camp to impress McReight.
"It kind of felt like we never left, six weeks goes quite quick. There were some few faces in there which was great but it was pretty chill, had measurements done, some tests, bit of training," McReight said.
"It was meant to be light but it's never really light, it always ramps up which was nice.
"Big Mass was great. He was pretty nervous, I dare say, but he'll take a lot from that. For the few days in camp he went pretty hard, trucked it up, hit pretty hard and probably got in a few little scuffles.
"But I think Big Mass is a personality - he doesn't take a backwards step - and he's going to be an important part to our success this year."
