By Adam Sheldon

Brothers head coach Ben McCormack says the prospect of beating a “glamour club” like Eastern Suburbs, to win back-to-back Australian Club Championship titles, is providing motivation ahead of tomorrow’s fixture. 

Brothers and Easts qualified for the annual Australian Club Championship after winning their premier rugby club competitions in Queensland and New South Wales, respectively. 

They will face each other at Brisbane’s Crosby Park, in a one-off game, which was postponed from last week due to ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred. 

Speaking to Ruby News ahead of the tie, McCormack said his side – which also took home the trophy last season after beating Randwick – were excited by the opportunity to win a major trophy against another famous club in Easts. 

“Easts is a glamour club. It would be nice to beat a club with a profile like Easts,” he said.

“No doubt they will come up with a good side. I know their coach Ben Batger, and he’s super competitive. He won’t be here to make up the numbers. They will be red-hot and ready to go. It will be a good contest.”

He added that Queensland sides always felt like they had something to prove when coming up against New South Wales opponents. 

“It’s fairly well publicised that Sydney is the self-proclaimed centre of rugby and have the best club competition,” McCormack said. 

“We are the little brother in a way, and have a bit of a chip on our shoulder – just like in the State of Origin. We take great enjoyment and pleasure in making sure we can stick it to them. When you get the win, you definitely get the satisfaction.”

While McCormack admitted that the scheduling of the fixture in the middle of preseason made preparation difficult, he said the team was raring to go. 

“It’s funny, having a big game like this in the middle of preseason, but we really want to win,” he said. 

“We’ve changed the back end of training this week to focus more on this game. The boys will be ready physically. 

“It’s a game that is rare to play in – you need to win the comp to play in this game. You don’t want to miss the opportunity when you get there. We won’t be taking it lightly.”

Adding to the club’s motivation, according to McCormack, was the chance to win back-to-back trophies, in a highly prestigious fixture. 

“One of the reasons you play the game is to be competitive and win everything. I have a bunch of boys in my team who think like that, who are obsessed with winning everything and anything,” he said. 

“This game is extra special because it’s marked in the history books. There are only a few teams who have won back-to-back Australian Club Championships – we are actually one of them.

“I know this playing group wants to be remembered as one of the few teams to go back-to-back. It’s rare, and it’s providing extra motivation.” 

McCormack said Brothers’ squad had changed a fair bit from last season, due to retirement, representative selection, and niggling injuries. 

“It looks a lot less like the grand final side than we would have liked, but the side will be competitive,” he said. 

“They key positions for me, will be whoever plays in second row, back row and hooker. I have really solid depth in those positions. They will make sure we are in the game.”

McCormack side the side which wanted the game more would ultimately take home the trophy.

“It’s traditionally a poor spectacle,” he mused.

“For the crowd, it’s not an easy watch because of the scheduling. There are errors. It’s 100 percent willing with great collisions, but there’s not the polish that players have after a playing full season. 

“It will be won or lost by which side can adapt quicker, who can pick their heads up after mistakes, and who can take advantages of the turnovers.”