Hooker James Hanson’s block of an attempted clearing kick resulted in the clinching try as the Queensland Reds beat Auckland 37-31 to overtake the Blues for first place overall in Super 15 rugby.
Hanson’s five-pointer after he blocked a kick from about 10 metres out from the line and Quade Cooper’s conversion gave the Reds a 10-point cushion and a four-try bonus point with just over 20 minutes left.
Cooper’s long-range penalty with 11 minutes left increased the margin to 13 points and left the Blues with the difficult task of scoring two converted tries in the closing minutes.
Rene Ranger scored a late try for Auckland for a four-try bonus point and the conversion pulled them to within seven points for another bonus point.
The win gave Queensland 50 points on the season, a point ahead of the Blues. Both teams lead their respective Australian and New Zealand conferences.
The Reds led 24-0 thanks in part to Cooper’s try inside the first five minutes. The flyhalf finished with 22 points after kicking four conversions and three penalties and also made several key tackles late in the match.
Blues captain Keven Mealamu said his side never thought they were out of the match despite trailing 24-0. They trailed 27-14 at halftime.
“We thought we had a chance despite the deficit,” said Mealamu. “We came out of it with a few competition points, which was good. And we learned a lot about our ability to come back.”
Queensland captain James Horwill said he wasn’t surprised by the Auckland comeback.
“We had the early lead, but you saw what happened when they got their hands on the ball,” Horwill said.
Queensland 37 (Quade Cooper, Saia Faingaa, James Hanson, Scott Higginbotham tries; Cooper 4 conversions, 3 penalties), Auckland 31 (Chris Lowrey, Alby Mathewson, Lachie Munro, Rene Ranger tries; Luke McAlister 4 conversions, penalty). HT: 27-14. — Sapa-AP