Reds, Brumbies can't be split in thriller It wasn't quite as eloquent as Bill Woodfull's rebuke to the English during Bodyline but the suggestion from Ewen McKenzie was largely the same. There were two sides at Suncorp Stadium last night but for large parts of the game, only one of them had much interest in playing rugby. Thankfully nobody was deliberately trying to remove heads in an effort to gain an advantage, although given the fierce, finals-like desperation from both teams, that could have been the next logical step. But McKenzie and Reds captain James Horwill were deeply frustrated men after the 19-all draw with the Brumbies, a result that instead of settling Australian rugby's biggest argument, only started a whole batch of new ones. Jake Schatz of the Reds competes at the lineout during the round 10 Super Rugby match between the Reds and the Brumbies at Suncorp Stadium on April 20, 2013 in Brisbane, Australia. Photo: Bradley Kanaris Jake White's Brumbies left the park without anything left in the tank, thanks to a superhuman defensive effort that spurned Queensland's seemingly endless attempts to crash over the line. They were justifiably proud of their work, even if the Reds scored three tries to one. Yet the repeated infringements on the Queensland attack - 12 in their own 22m zone - had McKenzie and Horwill fuming, as did a bizarre obstruction penalty on a restart that gifted the Brumbies three points. It was an ice-cream soft call from referee Glen Jackson in a game that was as hard as nails. Two Brumbies players spent time in the sin bin, Christian Lealiifano in the first half and Scott Sio in the second, as the Reds racked up a 16-7 advantage in penalties. They staunchly refused to kick goals, electing to try and force their way over the line. Jackson blew the pea out of his whistle, the Brumbies refused to relent and the Reds were left to bang their head against what was for all intents and purposes a brick wall. A mistake count of 17 to seven didn't help their cause. No surprises out there. Twelve penalties in the defending quarter for them - 12. And that's not counting the advantages on the penalties, the repeated infringements. I was pleased we went there to play, scored three tries, got over the try line a bunch of other times," McKenzie said. It was a frustrating time. There was a big crowd there that wanted to see some action. Sure, we made mistakes. It's easy to say I hindsight kick a goal. But in the end, we were determined to score some tries. We got a couple of yellow cards there. But we can only contribute what we contribute. I thought we played with good intent. Horwill was left to shake his head as the penalty count soared, while the big Reds lock was involved in a scuffle near the start of match with his Brumbies counterpart Ben Mowen. You go out there with a positive mindset. We went out and tried to play and there was just some cynical stuff. But that's just the reality of it. They tried very hard to slow the ball down," Horwill said. In the end we should have been better, especially when they were down to 14 men. We probably should have taken some more opportunities. The Brumbies were in charge at halftime before the Reds hit back in the 50th minute to make it 13-12. But on the restart, James Slipper was penalised for obstruction, leaving McKenzie "astounded." Lealiifano duly kicked the penalty on a good night when he had five from five and a try. I was massively disappointed. I think that's the only time we will see that penalty all year. I look at the video and think "that's marginal at best." The very next kick-off, I see the same thing right in front of me," McKenzie said. That's the only time I've seen that penalty all year and probably the only time we will. In a tight game, to get three points for not doing much - we understand the law - but if that's worth three points given what else was going on around the park, I'm astounded. White wasn't any less pleased with the draw than McKenzie but said the Reds had more than their share of chances and simply weren't able to crack a defensive barricade that rivalled some of the best he's seen in his years of coaching. Considering we played 20 minutes with 14 men and they had so many cracks at our line, you've got to be proud. I don't know if we could get punished anymore," White said. I think they had about 20 penalties on our try line. They had a lot of penalties and a full crack at our line. We're proud we kept them out. That backline played in the final and won two years ago. You're not going to get asked too many more victories than Genia and Cooper. Both sides will walk away with vastly different takes on the game. The Reds will view it as a game that they dominated in the second half but left tries on the park. For the Brumbies, a momentous defensive effort like that could make their season. Talk of who won the "moral" victory is largely pointless but at least White can claim to have taken some strides. This is his best result as a coach at Suncorp Stadium. I got hammered here once with the Springboks 49-0. So for me, it's a moral victory," White said. After a week of tit-for-tat between the two best Australian sides, the result left a strange vacuum in for both camps. Far from providing a resounding answer, it may have been the warm-up for another meeting between the sides later this season, one with far more on the line. "We'd like to play them again," said Brumbies captain Ben Mowen. I would not be surprised if we have to play them again this year.