Reds playmaker Quade Cooper knows the value of learning from mistakes and has vowed to continue that by burying the nightmare of previous shockers against the Chiefs.

The Waikato-born Cooper has played his childhood province three times for three Super 14 losses and none of these are matches he can boast about.

His first, in 2007 as an 18-year-old, featured so many blunders that some wag compiled all the lowlights and made a You Tube clip with a Benny Hill theme as the backing track.

Cooper doesn't mind admitting he's been guilty of placing undue pressure on himself to star against the team he supported before leaving for Brisbane at 14.

But the maturing five-eighth, showing career-best form after being cleared to play following burglary charges in December, said he won't fall into the same trap on Friday night in Hamilton.

"Every time we pay the Chiefs it's a game that hits home. I've always got a lot of family and friends there to watch the game against the team I grew up wanting to play for," Cooper told AAP.

"But it's four years on since I first started playing professional footy and I think it's time to get past that way of looking at it."

Cooper was born in the Waikato timber town of Tokoroa and even grew up playing backyard rugby with Chiefs and All Blacks three-quarter Richard Kahui, who made life hell for him when they met at Waikato Stadium in 2008.

"The first time I played against the Chiefs I couldn't catch a ball to save my life," the 11-Test Wallabies back said.

"I always was thinking ahead of what I was going to do next.

"I was trying so hard to put on a good performance against them that I forgot all the simple things that went before that."

Queensland coach Ewen McKenzie, impressed by Cooper's leadership in the early part of 2010, doubted his star would need any special advice.

Former Queensland teammate Berrick Barnes rated Cooper's opening round display against NSW as his best in a Reds jersey before the 22-year-old eclipsed it with a 31-point hand in the 41-20 upset of the Crusaders.

But Cooper is still finding it hard to come to terms with Saturday night's 27-18 loss to the Blues in the wet at Ballymore when he missed late conversion and penalty goal attempts that could have put the Reds ahead.

"It's pretty difficult to get past that one - back at Ballymore when we had everything going for us," he said.

"We were playing some good footy despite the conditions but again we let it slip away."

Late on Monday, the Reds were still waiting on medical advice on the finger injury to fullback Peter Hynes who may require surgery.

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