The Western Force first competed in 2006 when SANZAR extended the Super 12 to the Super 14. In their first season they got the wooden spoon but have improved steadily since then. Although still a bottom half of the log team, they are capable of giving stronger teams a run for their money.
The team has seen some controversy in their short 6 year existence. First there was the Firepower payment debacle that saw Matt Giteau return to the Brumbies after not getting paid. Then there was the Team Bonding weekend when two players got fined for animal abuse. This was an alcohol related incident. In 2008 Matt Henjak and Haig Sare got in a pub brawl. Henjak broke Sare's jaw and got suspended resulting in him leaving the Force.
Here is how they have done in Super Rugby to date:
Super 14 Standings
Season Pos Pld W D L F A +/- BP Pts
2006 14 13 1 2 10 223 373 −150 4 12
2007 7 13 6 1 6 276 282 −6 6 32
2008 8 13 7 0 6 247 278 −31 5 33
2009 8 13 6 1 6 328 275 +53 10 36
2010 13 13 4 0 9 258 364 −106 3 19
They finished 13th in the first Super Rugby competition in 2011.
Super Rugby 2012
In 2012 they will be captained by Nathan Sharpe. Their instruction will come from coach Richard Graham. The squad will be:
Player Position Union
Ben Whitaker Hooker Australia
Brett Sheehan Scrum-half Australia
Nathan Charles Hooker Australia
Justin Turner Scrum-half Australia
Salesi Ma'afu Prop Australia
James Stannard Scrum-half Australia
Kieran Longbottom Prop Australia
Ben Seymour Fly-half Australia
Pekahou Cowan Prop Australia
Winston Stanley Centre New Zealand
Tetera Faulkner Prop Australia
Will Tupou Centre Tonga
Nathan Sharpe Lock Australia
Rory Sidey Centre Australia
Toby Lynn Lock New Zealand
Alfie Mafi Centre Tonga
Sam Wykes Lock Australia
Gene Fairbanks Centre Australia
Phoenix Battye Lock Australia
Patrick Dellit Wing Australia
David Pocock Flanker Australia
Nick Cummins Wing Australia
Ben McCalman Flanker Australia
Jordan Rapana Wing Australia
Matt Hodgson Flanker Australia
Napolioni Nalaga Wing Fiji
Richard Brown Number 8 Australia
Cameron Shepherd Fullback Australia
Lachlan McCaffrey Number 8 Australia
New comers this season are:
Toby Lynn
Salesi Ma'afu
Napolioni Nalaga
Jordan Rapana
Winston Stanley
Notable Records
First pre-season game – vs the Cheetahs (lost 19–29)
First season game – Round 1, 2006 vs Brumbies (lost 10–25)
First try – Scott Fava vs Brumbies
First points – Scott Daruda (3 point penalty kick) vs Brumbies
First conversion – Scott Daruda vs Brumbies
First draw – Round 11, 2006 vs Crusaders (23–23)
First drop goal – Matt Giteau vs Cheetahs
First penalty try – Pre-Season 2006 vs Cheetahs (19–29)
First win – Round 13, 2006 vs Cheetahs (16–14)
First home win – Round 6, 2007 vs the Hurricanes (18–17)
The Western Force have not done their name any justice looking more like a farce than a force. They are an example of a SANZAR blunder bringing in more teams from the countries already involved instead of taking the game to the rest of the Southern Hemisphere. Like the Rebels they have to draw from players outside of Australia to fill their squad. SANZAR should stop looking only at the money aspect of it and rather at the quality of rugby produced. Quality will have full stadiums as a result and make more money than mere quantity of games.
I can't see the Force ending higher than 4th in the Australian Conference. They will compete with the Rebels for this spot. Overall they will finish anywhere between 15th and 9th on the table. They will finish the season once again as one of the dollar-&-number teams. These are the teams that are only there to make up the numbers and roll in money through tv rights and advertisement fees.
But as always this is just my view...
Super 14 Standings
Season Pos Pld W D L F A +/- BP Pts
2006 14 13 1 2 10 223 373 −150 4 12
2007 7 13 6 1 6 276 282 −6 6 32
2008 8 13 7 0 6 247 278 −31 5 33
2009 8 13 6 1 6 328 275 +53 10 36
2010 13 13 4 0 9 258 364 −106 3 19
They finished 13th in the first Super Rugby competition in 2011.
Super Rugby 2012
In 2012 they will be captained by Nathan Sharpe. Their instruction will come from coach Richard Graham. The squad will be:
Player Position Union
Ben Whitaker Hooker Australia
Brett Sheehan Scrum-half Australia
Nathan Charles Hooker Australia
Justin Turner Scrum-half Australia
Salesi Ma'afu Prop Australia
James Stannard Scrum-half Australia
Kieran Longbottom Prop Australia
Ben Seymour Fly-half Australia
Pekahou Cowan Prop Australia
Winston Stanley Centre New Zealand
Tetera Faulkner Prop Australia
Will Tupou Centre Tonga
Nathan Sharpe Lock Australia
Rory Sidey Centre Australia
Toby Lynn Lock New Zealand
Alfie Mafi Centre Tonga
Sam Wykes Lock Australia
Gene Fairbanks Centre Australia
Phoenix Battye Lock Australia
Patrick Dellit Wing Australia
David Pocock Flanker Australia
Nick Cummins Wing Australia
Ben McCalman Flanker Australia
Jordan Rapana Wing Australia
Matt Hodgson Flanker Australia
Napolioni Nalaga Wing Fiji
Richard Brown Number 8 Australia
Cameron Shepherd Fullback Australia
Lachlan McCaffrey Number 8 Australia
New comers this season are:
Toby Lynn
Salesi Ma'afu
Napolioni Nalaga
Jordan Rapana
Winston Stanley
Notable Records
First pre-season game – vs the Cheetahs (lost 19–29)
First season game – Round 1, 2006 vs Brumbies (lost 10–25)
First try – Scott Fava vs Brumbies
First points – Scott Daruda (3 point penalty kick) vs Brumbies
First conversion – Scott Daruda vs Brumbies
First draw – Round 11, 2006 vs Crusaders (23–23)
First drop goal – Matt Giteau vs Cheetahs
First penalty try – Pre-Season 2006 vs Cheetahs (19–29)
First win – Round 13, 2006 vs Cheetahs (16–14)
First home win – Round 6, 2007 vs the Hurricanes (18–17)
The Western Force have not done their name any justice looking more like a farce than a force. They are an example of a SANZAR blunder bringing in more teams from the countries already involved instead of taking the game to the rest of the Southern Hemisphere. Like the Rebels they have to draw from players outside of Australia to fill their squad. SANZAR should stop looking only at the money aspect of it and rather at the quality of rugby produced. Quality will have full stadiums as a result and make more money than mere quantity of games.
I can't see the Force ending higher than 4th in the Australian Conference. They will compete with the Rebels for this spot. Overall they will finish anywhere between 15th and 9th on the table. They will finish the season once again as one of the dollar-&-number teams. These are the teams that are only there to make up the numbers and roll in money through tv rights and advertisement fees.
But as always this is just my view...
Dav
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