Reds need to find solutions Will Genia looks less than impressed as the Reds take on the Force. THE Reds are going nowhere this season unless they can be self-critical and find a team solution out of adversity as they did in their 2011 championship season. While they can draw on the experience of turning things around before, 2013 has thrown up new challenges and needs a fresh show of character. The Reds are no longer the pacesetters in Australian rugby on the field. That mantle was wrestled away in Durban yesterday when ACT Brumbies made it a four-from-four start to the season. The team comparisons are stark. The Brumbies (14) have now scored twice the tries that the spluttering attack of the Reds (seven in five games) has produced even when playing one less game. They have mustered three four-try bonus points. Only by watching video of their 2011 and 2012 exploits do the Reds know what that feels like. Last year, there was always the feeling that the Brumbies bubble might burst. It took until the final round for the glitch but the Reds steamed into the play-offs instead. With Ben Mowen, Jesse Mogg, the reactivated George Smith and Stephen Moore leading the way, the 2013 Brumbies are only getting stronger with big performances across the park. The Reds are in serious catch-up mode 10 points adrift in the race to be the Australian Conference winner. No longer can the team wait for "Quade-to-spark-things Day." The soul-searching was intense after the Reds were taken apart 30-6 by NSW in Sydney in 2011. The improvement at the breakdown was marked and momentum for seven straight wins bubbled from that moment. Early season stumbles were turned around last year as well and that self-analysis is demanded again. "We've got to be really hard on ourselves and address it," captain Will Genia said after the 19-12 loss to Western Force. It has been frustrating not finding rhythm in attack but, sometimes, we haven't been patient enough and pushed passes rather than build. Full credit must also be given to the Force for their impressive underdog display. Lock Hugh McMeniman was superb. With Nathan Sharpe's retirement, bankable lineout winners like McMeniman are rare in Australia which alone makes him a top Wallaby candidate. "I didn't have too many wins at Suncorp Stadium with Reds sides I played with (2005-'09) so it's a big feeling in front of a crowd like that," McMeniman enthused. It was Force coach Michael Foley who sized up former All Blacks halfback Alby Mathewson as a potential import in 2011 and his sound judgment has been rewarded. Like all good halfbacks, he has a bit of dog in him. Having an All Black gives us some real presence in a key position and he has a strong sense of brotherhood with the team," Foley said. For Foley, it broke an 11-game losing streak with NSW Waratahs and Force sides.