Ex-Origin star tasked with reviving Queensland

After the devastation of the 2023 Rugby World Cup, halfback Tate McDermott is back to lead the Queensland Reds in what is a new era for the club.

The Reds have farewelled Brad Thorn as coach and welcomed another former State of Origin star – Les Kiss – to the helm.

McDermott spoke to Wide World of Sports ahead of the club’s Super Rugby Pacific season opener against the NSW Waratahs on Saturday.

Watch the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season on the home of rugby, Stan Sport, kicking off on February 23. Every match ad free, live and on demand in 4K UHD

Waratahs captain Jake Gordon and Reds captain Tate McDermott in Auckland.

WWOS: It’s only preseason but you’d have to be happy with that big win over the Tahs (32-7). Promising signs?

McDermott: Yeah, it is good signs but like you said, the real deal starts now. That first 40 (up 29-0 at halftime) is something we can be – not content with – but pretty happy with the progression and strides that we’ve made over the preseason.

Everyone talks about having a good preseason and we have had one. Particularly the amount of time on the ground that we had as Wallabies coming back from France, with new coaches, new staff, and a couple of new players has been really important. I’m really liking what I’m seeing so far.

London Irish coach Les Kiss at Gtech Community Stadium in 2023.

WWOS: How would you describe the style that Les is trying to implement? It looks like very positive rugby…

McDermott: Yeah, very positive, very aggressive, a lot of ball movement. Really tying into the DNA of Queenslanders – we love to run the ball, we love to offload, that natural game style which has been good so far. We’ve got to keep improving our defence because that’s going to decide how far we go in the competition.

But the forward pack’s development in this short period of time under Zane Hilton and Fish (Jonathan Fisher) has been good.

WWOS: It’s going to be a red hot battle for the No.10 jersey all season by the looks?

McDermott: Yes, Harry (McLaughlin-Phillips) took some good steps forward in preseason and Lawson (Creighton) got the first crack, put in a good effort. But yeah, it’s wide open. You’ve obviously got Tommy Lynagh there who can do a job and then you’ve got the experience of James O’Connor. So it’s a bit of a head scratcher for the coaches but any of those players can do a job.

WWOS: Have you spent a lot of time getting to know Les off the field as well? It’s obviously pretty important that coach/captain relationship…

McDermott: Yeah, I have. Obviously me and (co-captain) Liam (Wright) spend quite a bit of time with Les and the rest of the coaches. We’ve spent a lot of time with him around the style he wants to play, the culture, all those kind of things.

It’s been great. Thorny laid us with some really good foundations and so it’s not a case of starting completely from scratch. He’s kept some of the stuff Thorny had going.

WWOS: I guess everyone in the Wallabies had their own way of processing the World Cup. How did you deal with such a crazy year?

McDermott: It was a crazy year and the experience of my first World Cup was something I’ll never forget. And nor will I forget the results.

So, for me, having that three weeks pre-Christmas is something I haven’t had in a very long time. To get my body right, get my fitness levels up and improve my skill level and just devote a bit of time to myself and my game has been really good. I haven’t played two trials in a very long time, so I guess that’s the way of coping with it.

You just get straight back into the grind and you just want to improve and we’ve seen that from all the Queensland boys that have come back. They love playing for Queensland. And they’re serious about their development because they don’t want a repeat of what happened. So, that’s the only way forward for us. We’re going to keep getting better, collectively and individually as well.

New Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt at Allianz Stadium.

WWOS: How did your first meeting with Joe Schmidt go?

McDermott: It was good. Obviously, there’s still a lot of unknowns about who will be in those roles with Joe, but just speaking to him – he’s got a brilliant rugby brain and we’re in good hands there.

Very early discussions, pretty casual chat but it’s good to meet him and just listen to him speak. It’s exciting for everyone.

Alex Hodgman and Richie Mo’unga of the All Blacks celebrate winning a Bledisloe Cup match.

WWOS: Any new faces up in Queensland we should watch out for?

McDermott: I think Alex Hodgman will be good for us, an All Blacks loosehead. Matt Faessler again has taken strides as our hooker – not a new face but someone who will feature and is integral to our forward park.

We’ve got a pretty stable backline but Hunter Paisami, particularly in the trial match, looks to be back at his career best form. It’s awesome to see because last year was riddled with injuries and to see his confidence back, he’s worked on his body over the last couple of months. He’s in a really good space to be one of the key threats this year.

WWOS: It’s a strange one playing the Tahs in your final trial and then getting them first up. Does that big win give you an edge or is it all thrown out?

McDermott: Preseason is really tough to get a read on. Obviously the Tahs will be disappointed with that. We were happy with 30 minutes of footy but as we’ve seen a lot recently, 30 minutes doesn’t win you a game. We’ll continue to improve but we’ll also know and be realistic around the challenge that the Tahs present. Round one, they’re going to be a completely different team.

Their intensity is going to ramp up, they’ll get a couple of troops back and it’ll be a good challenge. A great way to start the season for us, to have them at Suncorp in front of our supporters.

Round 1 set 🔒 Who's taking a W to kick off season 2024?

↳ Super Rugby Pacific. Kicks Off Friday from 4:30pm AEDT. Every Match. Ad-free. Live & On Demand on the Home of Rugby, Stan Sport.#StanSportAU #SuperRugbyPacific pic.twitter.com/SF0ECngdLX

— Stan Sport Rugby (@StanSportRugby) February 21, 2024

ROUND ONE FIXTURE

Reds vs Waratahs: Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium, Saturday 8.05pm AEDT

REDS 2024 SQUAD

Props: Alex Hodgman, Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, Peni Ravai, Zane Nonggorr, George Blake, Massimo de Litiis, Sef Fa’agase

Hookers: Matt Faessler, Josh Nasser, Richie Asiata, Max Craig

Locks: Angus Blyth, Ryan Smith, Cormac Daly, Taine Roiri, Connor Vest

Loose forwards: Fraser McReight, Liam Wright (co-c), Harry Wilson, Seru Uru, Joe Brial, John Bryant

Halfbacks: Tate McDermott (co-c), Kalani Thomas, Louis Werchon

Five-eighths: Tom Lynagh, Harry McLaughlin-Phillips, Lawson Creighton

Centres: James O’Connor, Hunter Paisami, Taj Annan, Josh Flook, Isaac Henry, Frankie Goldsbrough

Outside backs: Jock Campbell, Jordan Petaia, Suliasi Vunivalu, Floyd Aubrey, Mac Grealy, Tim Ryan