By LIZ MOORE

UQ is building a new generation of players whose fathers also played Premier grade for the club.

While Brendan Nasser’s son Josh is unavailable in the Reds bubble, there were three other sons of Red Heavies running on for UQ against Easts on the weekend.

There was Connor Moroney and Alex Davies, whose fathers Richard Moroney and Bruce Davies were part of the 1990 UQ premiership team.

And in the second row was Fergus Lillicrap, whose father Cameron played for the Wallabies, Queensland and indeed the Red Heavies in the late 80s and early 90s, and is currently assistant coach for the Reds.

While the weekend’s result didn’t fall in UQ’s favour – a 31-24 loss – 22-year-old Lillicrap is not dwelling on it.

“After speaking to a few of the boys, there’s a lot of positives to take out of it,” Lillicrap said. “Obviously a few negatives, but I think only losing by a try after a pretty shocking performance isn’t too bad.

“We were able to play all right off some pretty average set piece.”

While Lillicrap won his first premiership last year in his first year playing Premier grade, the health and nutrition science student did not always have his sights set on following in his front-rower father’s rugby-playing footsteps.

The next-generation Lillicrap played lower-grade rugby at school, dividing his interest with soccer, before deciding to “have some fun with my mates” playing at UQ while studying exercise and nutrition science at the St Lucia campus.

“I’m not really sure why they put me into the Premier squad, to be honest,” Lillicrap said of making the squad two years ago.

“But I just went with it, just trained my hardest and kept showing up and just listening to whatever they told us we needed to do and tried to keep working on it.

“Then last year I got the chance to come into the Prems team, and we did pretty well.”

Lillicrap recounted seeing his Dad after the big win as a “pretty special moment”.

“This year, I want to really own my spot,” he said. “Last year I was a little bit on the fringe, like off the bench and whatever. This year I wanted to make my stamp on the team and say, I’m in it, I’m not on the bench this year.

“Wherever they put me, that’s where I want to be,” Lillicrap said of playing between lock and No.6. “I want to be in the team first, and wherever I want to be second.

“Obviously I’m thinking about my spot and all that, but it’s a bit more of a team comes first. Wherever they put me, if I can bring something, that’s where I’ll play. I’m not going to kick up a stink if they put me on the bench. It’s just about getting some wins.”

Lillicrap said while he, along with his teammates in the same position, has no interest in riding on his Dad’s coat tails, he has drawn on his Dad’s generous guidance as he’s started to take his own rugby more seriously.

“I’m really lucky with my Dad. Obviously he was a pretty good footballer, but he’s also assistant coach for the Reds, and he’s really good at helping me out with things I personally can work on, but also giving me a bit of insight into what it’s like to be the next level up.

“Especially in the last couple of years, I’ve gotten a lot of help from him working on my game. What he thinks I should do to get a bit better, working on all the little things.

“It’s good to have someone with that much experience that I could just ask for help if I want it.”

As for whether there was any chance Lillicrap could have gone to a different club, he’s emphatic.

“No chance. I was never going to a different club. I didn’t come to Uni to play Premier grade or to win a lot.

“I came just because I go to UQ and I know my Dad used to play here, and I thought it would be a lot of fun.

“And it has been so far, especially playing good footy. But I was never going to go anywhere else.

“Once a Heavy…”

IMAGE: BRENDAN HERTELL / QRU