Buchanan calls for one more year

RESIDENTS coach Jon Buchanan has put his hand up for another year in the job, as Queensland put on a masterclass performance to claim a 36- 6 victory over NSW yesterday.

In his first stint as the Residents coach, Buchanan was able to bring some pride back to the Sunshine State, after Queensland lost last year’s annual showdown to NSW.

Buchanan’s side was clinical in the second stanza, putting on five tries to run away with the victory over their interstate rivals.

The defence from the team was outstanding in getting them into the position where they could win it and Buchanan was a happy man after the clash at Langlands Park. While he only signed a one- year deal to take over as the Queensland Residents coach at the start of this year, he did not hesitate in expressing his interest to stay in the role.

“Hopefully, I get another crack at it next year,” he said.

“I would definitely like to. It’s been a great week and I’ve had real good staff around me. It’s been really enjoyable.”

The forwards dominated in defence and attack to lay the foundations for the team’s spine to run wild in the second half, with fullback Jahrome Hughes and halves Billy Walters and Kyle Laybutt all key in Queensland’s stirring performance.

Bench utility Christian Hazard and hooker Mitch Cronin were also influential in the back end of the game.

Buchanan said there was not one player on the field that he could fault for their performance yesterday.

“In the second half, we got a bit of momentum through the middle and were able to capitalise on that,” he said.

“I don’t think we had a bad player on the field ... they were all good for us which was really pleasing.”

QUEENSLAND RESIDENTS 36 ( Delouise Hoeter 2, Dean Britt, Billy Walters, Tom Opacic, Mitchell Frei tries; Scott Doyle 6 goals) d NSW RESIDENTS 6 ( Moses Leota try; Jayden Nikorima 1 goal)