Kuridrani back for Reds

Reds coach Nick Stiles has made minor changes to his side to take on the Western Force at Suncorp Stadium this Friday night.

The Reds head into the match fresh from the bye following a win over the Melbourne Rebels. 

Injury has forced the only change to the starting side, with Chris Kuridrani replacing young winger Campbell Magnay, who was ruled out of the match due to a concussion suffered against the Rebels. 

The only other changes to the team are in the reserves. James Tuttle returns to the match-day 23 in the backup scrum-half role in place of Moses Sorovi, with Jake McIntyre and Lachlan Maranta also brought onto the bench in place of Australian Under 20s representatives Hamish Stewart and Izaia Perese.

Stiles said: “It’s nice to be able to put out a fairly consistent team and reward guys for their performance against the Rebels two weeks ago.

“We felt we’ve made a lot of progress as a group in recent weeks and are really starting to hit our stride, but it doesn’t get any easier this week. We know the Force will come into this match desperate for a win. We need to match that desperation and desire for 80 minutes and if we do that, we should produce a performance we can be proud of.”

This Friday’s match will also see Reds hooker Stephen Moore equal Keven Mealamu’s record as the second-most capped Super Rugby player of all time, when he runs out for his 175th match in the competition.

Reds: 15 Karmichael Hunt, 14 Chris Kuridrani, 13 Samu Kerevi (c), 12 Duncan Paia'aua, 11 Eto Nabuli, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Nick Frisby, 8 Scott Higginbotham, 7 George Smith, 6 Hendrik Tui, 5 Lukhan Tui, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Sam Talakai, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Sef Fa'agase
Replacements: 16 Alex Mafi, 17 Kirwan Sanday, 18 Taniela Tupou, 19 Izack Rodda, 20 Adam Korczyk, 21 James Tuttle, 22 Jake McIntyre, 23 Lachlan Maranta

Date: Friday, May 26
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Kick-off: 19:45 local (9:45 GMT)
Referee: Brendon Pickerill
Assistant Referees: Rohan Hoffmann, Jordam Way
TMO: Damien Mitchelmore