'Finals is on our radar': What has 'hurt' the Rebels in the past

The Melbourne Rebels have only made the Super Rugby playoffs once in their history, but one of their key players isn’t pointing fingers ahead of the new campaign.

Former Australian Under-20s flanker Brad Wilkin made his Rebels debut in 2019 after an injury-riddled stint with the New South Wales Waratahs.

Injuries continued to plague the rising stars career once he moved south to Victoria, but the 27-year-old took a turn for the better this year.

Wilkin played 14 matches in Super Rugby Pacific – starting all but two – which was a significant increase on his career-best of seven matches during the 2018 season with the Tahs.

But make no mistake, Wilkin has played some important rugby for the Rebels.

The backrower was also part of the Rebels squad that created history in Super Rugby Australia a couple of years ago, as they qualified for the playoffs in the most dramatic circumstances possible.

Wilkin came off the bench in the Super Saturday clash with the Western Force in Newcastle, which the Victoria-based club won by four points – the exact score they needed to progress.

Generally though, wins have been hard to come by for the Rebels throughout their history; their best finish in a campaign which wasn’t hampered by COVID was ninth.

But Wilkin isn’t pinning the blame on anyone else.

The star flanker said the Rebels have been their “own worst enemy” in some losses over the years.

“We speak of a fast and fearless game style, so in order to do that we have to back ourselves and there’s a lot of emphasis on the forward and the set-piece in order to deliver that,” Wilkin told The Roar.

“We’ve got Carter Gordon, who has a couple of years of experience under his belt. I don’t want to put him under too much pressure, but he’ll have a big role for us next year and hopefully he can learn from a lot of the experiences that he already has.

“I just want to see us compete at everything we do. I think we’ve always been a team where if we lose a game, it’s generally by our own mistakes. We’ve been our own worst enemy at times.

“Discipline is a word that is quite hot in Australian rugby and you only had to watch the test matches to see that the Wallabies’ discipline hurt them a lot throughout the year.

“I think that’s something that has hurt us in the past as well, so jut being a bit more disciplined around our game style and a bit more ruthless so we’re not shooting ourselves in the foot.”

But the past is the past, and that can’t be undone or altered.

Instead, Wilkin is focused on the season ahead; aiming for a finals berth with the team as the flanker discussed how “determined and dedicated” he is to win.

“I prioritised just staying on the park (this year) and I was able to achieve that,” he added.

“But definitely moving forward to next year, looking around the group we have, I have been around a bit at the club.

“I’m coming into my fifth year, so naturally I’m aware of my position in the team of having to be a bit more of a voice and a leader around some of the younger guys coming through.

“We’ve got good, young talent in the Rebels, so offering my experience where I can.

“I’m very determined and dedicated to win. I’ll be trying to help the team achieve a good result next year. Finals is on our radar.”