It’s that time of year that every player enjoys after weeks of running between field markers, dominating tackling bags, enduring a scrum machine and battling the hit shields. That’s right, it’s pre-season trial time for the Australian Super Rugby sides.
This weekend the Brumbies head to Griffith in New South Wales to take on the Waratahs and the Queensland Reds head across to Perth to take on the Force. The Melbourne Rebels already got a head start on their Aussie rivals when they headed to Fiji to take on the Drua and came away empty handed in a 24-0 loss.
Being a World Cup year, there will be even more of an emphasis with load management on the Wallabies players. The Top line players won’t get much of a run until the last trial of the respective sides so it’s all about squad management and giving those guys who have stepped in from club land to help fill the void with the absence of Wallabies players during and after the Spring Tour of 2022.
The trials are usually a chance to give the catchment areas out in regional areas a chance to see their teams go at it before the slog of Super Rugby kicks off in the bigger stadiums. After the COVID disrupted years, the Brumbies are heading out to a region starved of top line rugby and will head to Wagga Wagga the following week to take on the Melbourne Rebels.
The Reds and Waratahs will meet up in Narrabri next weekend to continue their Santos festival of rugby, hopefully this time without the noise from protestors against the agenda of Santos.
With only three weeks until the Super Rugby Pacific season kicks off, it’s time to start singing your teams praises to ensure they take out the title of pre-season champions and the bragging rights that go with it.
