The Reds have made one change to their line-up that claimed victory over the Waratahs for their clash with the Hurricanes as Aidan Toua replaces Mike Harris in the full-back jersey.
Back-row Radike Samo also returns and will take his place on the bench, replacing the injured Jarrad Butler, who was unavailable for selection
Reds Director of Coaching Ewen McKenzie said his outfit was targeting a more complete performance against the Hurricanes on Friday.
"We are a team that prides itself on being adaptable and capable of changing our gameplan on a week-to-week basis and that is reflected in our team selections," McKenzie said.
"We have strong thoughts about how the game is going to be played and feel that Aidan really has something to offer in this match from fullback. We took a pre-emptive approach to his hamstring last week in resting him for the Waratahs and you can already sense the benefit it has had to his preparation for this game.
"However, before that Aidan had earned his place in the starting side against the Brumbies, so we're excited to bring him back at his preferred position for a match we feel will suit the style of game that is going to be played.
"We're also happy with how our centre combination of Ben Tapuai and Chris Feauai-Sautia came together last week and we will again be expecting more from them against the Hurricanes.
"Having Radike healthy once again is also pleasing. We all saw the impact he made with his involvements during the trials and we'll be looking for a repeat performance when he's called upon on Friday night."
Reds: 15 Aidan Toua, 14 Dom Shipperley, 13 Chris Feauai-Sautia, 12 Ben Tapuai, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Ben Lucas, 8 Jake Schatz, 7 Liam Gill, 6 Eddie Quirk, 5 Ed O'Donoghue, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 James Slipper (c), 2 Saia Faingaa, 1 Greg Holmes.
Replacements: 16 James Hanson, 17 Albert Anae, 18 Adam Wallace-Harrison, 19 Radike Samo, 20 Nick Frisby, 21 Mike Harris, 22 Luke Morahan.
Date: Friday, March 1
Kick-off: 18:20 (10:20 GMT)
Venue: Suncorp Stadium
Comments
tha_mai says...
three matches on a Friday afternoon/evening (Thai time)
Blues kick off 1.35pm, Waratahs 3.40pm, through to Reds 5.20pm. Very civilised times!
Expert as I am not, picking the three home teams to win. Blues/Blues/Reds.
But not betting on it.
Hope Toua plays well, a lot of pressure, he could be a real star to watch for.
At the other end of the age scale - Radike Samo! He and Brad Thorn could get together to talk old times, they must be the two oldest players this year (?), some of the young ones about half their age.
Posted 00:14 28th February 2013
2eyedkiwi says...
Whats going on Ewen? Upset at NZ? 2 Kiwis swapped out for a Fijian and a PNGian?. Why don't you drop Digby, Chris S-F, and soft Copperman while you're at it? We'll happily have Digby back, but you can keep Quade and Chris. Please please keep Quade.
Morning Trynats. Hows the humidity?
Posted 19:46 27th February 2013