Brumbies better prepared for Super title push: Hooper

Perth Now

2 days ago

Tom Hooper says the ACT Brumbies' push for the Super Rugby Pacific title has been years in the making and the team feels "far more prepared" than in previous semi-finals.
The Brumbies will tackle the Chiefs in Hamilton on Saturday looking to end an Australian team hoodoo in New Zealand, where no side has ever won a Super knock-out game.
The ACT side has now made the semis the last four seasons, since the competition added the Pacific element, but haven't been able to crack a place in the final and haven't won the title since 2004.
Hooper, who has starred at both lock and blindside flanker, said the current crop of Brumbies faced this challenge with confidence after their seasons together.
"It's all been building to a head for a long time now so we're very keen to take it one step further, take the learnings from the last three years and then take the learnings from games we've played this year," the 24-year-old said.
"We're far more prepared, this group's been together for a long time and having the nucleus together for a fair chunk of this season has been really beneficial."
The teams met in round three at FMG Stadium Waikato with the home side triumphant 49-34, however both scored six tries with the Chiefs' goal-kicking the difference.
The Brumbies only trailed by five points before Anton Lienert-Brown locked down the result with a converted try in the 79th minute.
The visitors were missing first-choice players Hooper, Noah Lolesio, Rob Valetini, Tuaina Taii Tualima and David Feliua from that starting line-up.
The Brumbies eliminated the Hurricanes to advance to the final four, with four of their five tries scored by their front-row, backing themselves to score each time they entered the 22m zone.
"It's a huge advantage and we really pride ourselves on our 'A-zone' and I think we 100 per cent rate on the weekend and if we can do that against the Chiefs, it would be really great," Hooper said.
"If I look back two years (2023 semi-final against the Chiefs), our conversion rate in A-zone was what lost us that game, ultimately."
But Hooper said they weren't "one-trick ponies".
"At the moment, we've been doing really well in our pick and go, but that doesn't mean we can't swing it out wide to Corey Toole and he can gas one over.
"Any team that's going to win this competition has to have a few different weapons to their arsenal and we're definitely not a one-trick pony.
"But that trick at the moment is working very well for us ... we'll keep going back to it, but we've got a few different weapons up our sleeve."
Hooper is shifting his career to the UK, but he said he wasn't thinking this could be his last match in Brumbies colours.
"We've got two grand finals left and we're going to pour absolutely everything into it as we fell short the last three years because we didn't," he said.
"We're pouring everything into this one and then we'll pour everything into the next one and then after that we'll pour beers into the cup and drink out of it."