A rev-up speech from 41-year-old veteran Louise “Cookie” Burrows has the Brumbies Women’s team heading to Brisbane on Saturday with their eyes firmly fixed on upsetting Queensland in the Super W.
Only it won’t be an upset to the Brumbies, if Burrows’ words do the trick.
Queensland are favourites to take down the ACT visitors given they’re seen by most as one of two teams - along with NSW - who can genuinely win the Super W.
But Burrows, a former Wallaroos, has been playing rugby for the ACT for over two decades and she was keen to stress to her young teammates that beating Queensland is not only possible, it was done only three years ago in the 2017 national titles.
"Cookie had a chat to the girls last night reminding them we have beaten them three years in a row back then, they are beatable,” Brumbies skipper Shellie Millward said.
"They carry a stigma with them, and with NSW, but you just have to break that.
"They are only human and if we pressure them just like anyone else, they will break.
"Our motivation isn’t to close the gap, it is to beat them, I guess. Closing the gap would be nice but coming away with a win is our main goal.”
The Brumbies lost to NSW in round one, beat the Rebels in round two convincingly and had last weekend off with a bye.
Queensland are coming off a 15-12 to NSW in the last round, after big wins over the Rebels and RugbyWA.
"Queensland have set the benchmark, along with NSW, in this competition. In saying that, we have beaten them in the past. We just have to stick to our gameplan really and not let them get a roll on because we know how good their backs are,” Millward said.
"We have been smashing the fitness, because we have to. We know that Queensland are a dominant side and get a good roll-on with their forward pack and won’t stop, so we have to be fit to match it with them.
"Every team has their own strengths and we have to play to them. We have fallen away from our own structure, when we watch the tapes back, but when we stick to our structure that’s when we put the points on the board and have teams on the back foot.
"We have to just trust in what we have been training and not play into their hands.”
The Brumbies take on Queensland in the Super W at Ballymore on Saturday at 5pm (6pm AEDT). LIVE on Kayo Sportrs and RUGBY.com.au, with a delayed broadcast on FoxSports.
TEAM
Brumbies to face Queensland
1. Violeta Tupuola
2. Louise Burrows
3. Peta Cox
4. Emily Sogal
5. Shellie Millward (C)
6. Michaela Leonard
7. Georgia O'Neill
8. Tayla Stanford
9. Remi Wilton
10. Carly Hill
11. Brooke Gilroy
12. Sammie Wood
13. Michelle Perry
14. Darcy Read
15. Rachael Crothers
Reserves
16. Harriet Elleman
17. Stefanie Stewart-Jones
18. Anna Korovata
19. Sammie Maxwell
20. Sharyn Laws
21. Jane Garraway
22. Emily Mcdonald
23. Biola Dawa
