After spending 2023 with the Reds, former UQ coach Mick Heenan has headed down the highway to join a Bond program with bucketloads of potential.

Heenan inherits a young, but extremely talented squad and could be the man to help Bond push deeper into the playoffs this season.

Overview with Mick Heenan: 

“It’s a different environment at Bond and a very young group,” Heenan told Rugby News. 

“There’s a sprinkling of experience with some of our leaders but we had four colts starting in the forward pack in our last trial so that brings down the average age quite a bit, even if you do throw in an older guy like Rhys Sheriff on the other side of the spectrum. 

“We’re going to have a year where guys are going to get a taste of first grade for the first time and we’ll hopefully have a good mix of experience and youth. 

“UQ is a rugby club with a lot of tradition and history behind it but it’s run very separately to the university. In comparison, Bond is very much a part of and is really embraced by the university. The facilities are fantastic and the support that we get from the high levels of the university is refreshing.

“There’s a really strong Gold Coast rugby community and both the university and the rugby club see the importance of nurturing and giving back to that community. 

“The original reason there is a QPR club on the Gold Coast is to give local kids with some ambition a chance to play Premier Grade without having to move to Brisbane. Bond stepped in at a time when the future of the club wasn’t looking great and the university really embraces the importance of sport as part of a holistic university experience.

“Looking back at Bond’s season last year, obviously they had a dominant regular season and then unfortunately couldn’t quite handle the intensity of the finals campaign. Premier Rugby has two seasons every year, there’s the regular season where you try to to get into the finals, then you have the finals which is completely different to the regular season. 

“Talking to some of the players, because of the way they rolled through the regular season, they probably didn’t appreciate how much the intensity was going to rise come finals time. 

“They had some key players missing for the finals as well, which was no ones fault, but you need your best players on the field. 

“At the moment, we’re focussing on the first game of the season against Sunnybank at home and then we will take each game a week at a time.

“The aim at the end of the regular season is to be in a position where you are part of finals and you are in good shape and confident. If we’re fortunate enough to get in that position, then I’m confident our coaches will prepare the guys to make the most of that opportunity.”

2023: Semi finalists (lost to Wests 40-26, then Brothers 42-17)

Ins: Fred Dorrough (Sydney), Jordan Lenac (Scotland) Tim Fatialofa (from NZ), Lukas Ripley (Rebels), Harrison Bell (Colts), Oliver Barrett (Nudgee), Fergus Gillan (TSS) Nathan Beil (UQ), Rocco Gollings (Colts), Gavin Luka (returning).

Outs: Lachie Connors (UQ), Mollie Saumalangi (Sydney), Helemen Samuela (Souths).

What style of rugby will be seen from Bond this year? 

“There will be a few tweaks but we’re not starting from scratch,” Heenan said. 

“One of the attractions of me taking the job at Bond was that they were already playing a style of rugby that aligned with the type of rugby I like to coach. 

“There are a few little things we’re working on and obviously we’ve got a different playing group this year but there’s a strong core group of players that played a lot of really good rugby last season and we’ll be looking to build on that up tempo, fast style. 

“We’ve just got to make sure we’ve got enough aggression and physicality to play the way we want to play.”

Player(s) to watch:

“There have been a number of guys who I’ve been really impressed with throughout preseason. Tyler Campbell has been exceptional all summer. He’s a very underrated player when you look across the the competition. 

“Rhian Stowers is another outstanding player and he’s been wonderful. 

“Then we’ve got a few colts who might not play first grade every week but they’ll certainly have an impact this season. Guys like Oliver Barrett, Fergus Gillan, Zeb Misios and Harry Bell. 

“I’d expect them to play between first grade and colts this year and do really well in both competitions.”

Which two teams will play in this year’s grand final and why?

“I guess I have to pick a Bond v UQ final. That would make for a nice story, wouldn’t it,” Heenan laughed.