'What have we just witnessed?': No Zac Lomax, no worries as Western Force pull off huge upset
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No Zac Lomax, no worries for the Western Force, who pulled off one of the upsets of the Super Rugby season with a 42-19 away win against the Queensland Reds.
Lomax's debut was put on ice after the Force scratched him from their lineup in Brisbane on Saturday night.
The ex-NRL star had been named on the bench but the Force announced his withdrawal an hour before kick off at Suncorp Stadium.
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Zac Lomax of the Force is seen ahead of the round eight Super Rugby match. Getty
"Lomax experienced hamstring tightness this week and the club has taken a precautionary approach after a steep build having joined the Force three weeks ago," the club said.
His next opportunity comes in Lautoka next weekend against the Fijian Drua.
Force coach Simon Cron will be hopeful he is right after both of his starting wingers - Wallabies Darby Lancaster and Dylan Pietsch - failed to finish the game.
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Lancaster scored a spectacular try from Ben Donaldson's cross-field kick but landed awkwardly on his right ankle and was on crutches at full time. Pietsch limped off with a foot injury.
Force lock Franco Molina scored an unlikely hat-trick to keep the Perth club's finals hopes alive.
"What have we just witnessed from the second rower?" Tim Horan said on Stan Sport.
The win lifted the Force to ninth of 11 teams while the Reds are sixth on the ladder.
The top six teams qualify for the finals.
"If you look at our game against the Hurricanes, the first half was amazing and for some reason our boys in the second half maybe feel like, 'what are we doing winning, you know?' So we've got to change that mindset with them," Force coach Simon Cron said.
Harry Wilson of the Reds reacts after a Force try. Getty
"But what I was most pleased of with our boys this week was the end of the week was very player driven, and that's something we've been chasing over the last few years.
"We've put 60-65 minute performances together but we needed to play for 80. I think the boys did that tonight."
Reds coach Les Kiss - the Wallabies boss-in-waiting - has a huge job on his hands this week as the defending champion Crusaders roll into town next weekend.
"Tonight they'll (the fans) be very disappointed as we are, but please come out and support us next week," Kiss told Stan Sport.
"The boys do respond to you and we've got to respond to what happened tonight and be prepared to work hard again and get things right, that we become ourselves again.
"We've just gone off being who we truly are as a team at the moment."
