Higginbotham adds support to Stiles
SCOTT Higginbotham has joined Samu Kerevi in strongly backing Nick Stiles amid continued stalling over whether he will still be Queensland Reds coach next year.
The Queensland Rugby Union can still offer no comment to clarify the coach’s status despite a season review being completed more than a month ago. Reds regular Kerevi is hoping the uncertainty can be resolved because “everyone’s in the dark”, according to backrower Higginbotham.
Asked if the coach had the support of the playing group, Kerevi said: “100 per cent. The boys love Stilesy.”
“He’s done a great job ... and (with) the team culture aspects he’s brought on.
“Obviously from a player’s point of view, we want all of that sorted right now. I’m not sure what’s going on with the decisions up top.”
Kerevi was speaking in South Africa where he is preparing for the Wallabies’ tough Test against the Springboks in Bloemfontein early on Sunday. Stiles’s four-from-15 slate in Super Rugby put his coaching under the microscope during the post-season review.
Stiles heading a beefed-up coaching core with new senior assistant Tony McGahan, the former Melbourne Rebels coach, is the hierarchy listed on the Reds website.