Queensland coach Brad Thorn says he has a fitter, consistent and smarter Reds squad on his hands this year after they prevailed in the Brisbane heat with a 36-14 bonus point Super Rugby win over the Brumbies.
Fit again No.10 Bryce Hegarty's precise long-range kicking gave the Reds a whole new look as they continually turned the Brumbies around in stifling in 33-degree heat.
Queensland dominated the first half but only led 10-0, with a try to Brumbies winger Henry Speight early in the second stanza making it a three-point game.
Back-to-back long range tries to Chris Feauai-Sautia and Tate McDermott broke the game open as they notched consecutive wins to breathe life into their season.
A shocking Moses Sorovi pass handed debutant Jahrome Brown the easiest of tries and some unwanted Reds nerves at 24-14 with nine minutes to play.
But they ended any hope of a comeback when Hegarty finished another long-range effort started by replacement hooker Brandon Paenga-Amosa's long pass.
Provider then turned receiver when the hooker burrowed over on the buzzer to earn a bonus point.
"Last year two things stood out to me; consistency and smarts ... (they) were things to chip away at and also conditioning," Thorn said.
"Are we anywhere near the full thing yet? Nowhere near it, but it's good little things we're seeing across the board."
Queensland's win took them to 2-3 for the season and ahead of the Sunwolves into fourth in their conference, while the Brumbies (2-4) remain in third after missing a chance to go to the top.
The Brumbies' 27-sequence opening phase - a Super Rugby record - didn't net the visitors a point.
And when an ensuing rolling maul was halted the Reds turned the tables to control the rest of the first half.
Two rolling mauls - which have netted the Brumbies nine tries already this year - were effective for the Reds and led to Scott Higginbotham's opener.
Further souring the loss was an arm injury to Rory Arnold that forced him off after 12 minutes.
Brumbies hooker Folau Faingaa was also nullified as he aimed to become just the second man to score in six consecutive Super Rugby games.
"We were dominated (in the set piece) ... when things don't go well we've got to be better," Brumbies coach Dan McKellar said.
"Pressure, stress; it comes in professional sport and Super Rugby and at the moment we don't handle those moments well."
