Winger Tim Ryan feasted with his second hat-trick of tries for 2024 during a relentless 59-13 victory for the Queensland Reds at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night in Super Rugby Pacific.
The young finisher was the first to thank the commanding work of the pack and the slick service of the backs inside him for his chances against the Western Force.
The Reds scored nine tries in all in a sharp performance rated as “up there with the most complete of the year”, according to co-captain Tate McDermott.
“This season, no team has played in Fiji and won the next week. The guys that came back into the side like Josh Flook, Matt Faessler and Tom Lynagh really gave us a lot.”
Co-captain Liam Wright featured as part of an excellent backrow with No.8 John Bryant’s workrate outstanding and two-try flanker Fraser McReight earning the Frank Ivory Medal as player-of-the-match in Indigenous Round.
“We wanted to get momentum with a good win and we’ve got the dice rolling nicely towards the quarter-finals,” Wright said.
“That’s the sort of performance we wanted to give our fans in our last Super Rugby game at Suncorp Stadium this season.”
There were strong markers that the Reds stayed clinical throughout by conceding just six penalties, winning their 15 lineouts and missing just 12 tackles.
Ryan is the first Reds player in the professional era to score two hat-tricks and he's done it in the first seven games of his fledgling career. He has nine in all.
“These things happen every now and again. Tim is a very level-headed guy and he just finds a way to the tryline, doesn’t he,” Reds head coach Les Kiss said.
“The conversation is now more about his footy than the ‘Junkyard Dog’ theatre.
“Credit to all our coaches for really getting the boys in the right head space for this game.”
Wright saluted centre Josh Flook who had a strong game in his 50th for the Reds.
“He’s been a leader in the defensive space and keeps adding finesse in the backline,” Wright said.
“He always punches above his weight.”
The Reds hit the Force with a mixture of weapons. Hookers Faessler and Josh Nasser both scored from well-executed drives off lineouts. Lock Seru Uru plunged over after a sequence of pick-and-go pressure.
Ryan scored after just four minutes when McDermott cross-kicked expertly from the ruckbase into his arms on the tryline.
It was 12-3 when Flook put winger Mac Grealy into a hole so he could feed fullback Jock Campbell for the try.
The 25-6 half-time lead was ruthlessly built on with quick back-to-back strikes after the break.
A tackle by standout Faessler helped dislodge the ball from a Force attacker. In a blink, the ball was relayed through five sets of hands to the opposite touchline and Ryan was running in a turnover try started nearly 60m downfield.
Flook’s polish again came to the fore just past the hour mark when he dummied, veered and put McReight over for his second try. The 50-strong Flook family and friends fan club in the stands roared their approval.
Late in the game, prop Sef Fa’agase dished a nice ball to fellow replacement James O’Connor, whose quick hands put the pacy Ryan into a hole for his hat-trick.
The fifth-placed Reds head to Sydney for a Friday night clash against the NSW Waratahs before the quarter-finals a week later.
QUEENSLAND REDS 59
Tries: Tim Ryan 3, Fraser McReight 2, Seru Uru, Jock Campbell, Matt Faessler, Josh Nasser. Conversions: Tom Lynagh 3, James O’Connor. Penalty Goals: Tom Lynagh 2.
Defeated
WESTERN FORCE 13
Try: Bayley Kuenzle. Conversions: Bayley Kuenzle. Penalty Goals: Ben Donaldson 2.
Half-time: Reds 25-Force 6
Crowd: 12,321
Venue: Suncorp Stadium
