Author: Ben Yeates
On the day of the highly anticipated SANZAAR announcement the Force and the Southern Kings squared off in Perth in perhaps the final match to ever be played between these two teams. The Western Force beat the Southern Kings 46-41 at nib Stadium to claim their second win of the 2017 campaign. In a try-fest Malcolm Jaer scored a hat-trick for the Kings, and Alex Newsome grabbed a double for the Force, as the home team rallied from 25-38 down to win by five. First half It was tight and scrappy as the home team raced to a 10-0 lead…
The West Are “Force’d” To Play a Big Season 2017 is the biggest season for the Force, they will be fighting for survival. Their backs are against the wall financially and, many minds think it beggars belief the franchise will still have a future after this season. The Sea of Blue have always played their part, displaying unyielding loyalty and expect them to be behind the boys for the titanic 2017 campaign. Through the ‘Own The Force’ campaign, the administrators in the Force organisation have done a fantastic job to raise much needed funds to keep the heart of Rugby…
It’s getting late, I look outside my office window to the west, an unobstructed view across Kings Park, the western suburbs (for those who reside in the East Coast, the Western Suburbs is not a derogatory term) and out to the beautiful Western Australian coast line. The sunset is terribly pretty I think to myself, hoping this serenity will inspire me to write this season review. Nothing. The clock has hit the hour of 6pm – arghh more coffee will do the trick. After battling through the fine spread of Nespresso pods, I finally return to my office, recharged…
It was another tough night at the office for the Western Force who went down to the Stormers by 19 points in a soaked and windy night in Perth. The Match Jonno Lance got the Force off to a good start and continued his good form with boot as he knocked over three points in the sixth minute. The match turned on his head when Angus Cottrell and Daniel Du Plessis were both stretchered off before the 15th minute. Cottrell had rushed up out of defence and suffered a nasty head clash, and Du Plessis was knocked out by a…
It was deja vu for the Western Force as they were edge out by 1 point against the Cheetahs last Saturday night in Bloemfontein. Although recording yet another defeat against their name this season, it wasn’t all doom and gloom. There were positive aspects from last week’s game that will give them confidence going up against Stormers in Perth this Saturday night. On the other hand, the Stormers cruised to victory and picked up a valuable bonus point on the road with their 57 to 31 victory against the Rebels. The Stormers’ form this season has been a little inconsistent…
What an entertaining game the loyal Sunwolves home crowd were treated to. There was a total of 62 points scored in an enterprising match in Tokyo. The Force took the honours in a 40-22 win, but many people must be wondering where has this Force team been all season? The Match The Force played with width and looked to keep the ball in hand. However, the Sunwolves continued to display their attacking flair and this was evident when Yamada crossed for the first try. It was a perfect start for the Sunwolves, who from the very beginning looked to go…
The Western Force jet set on their maiden voyage to Japan this weekend to take on the Sunwolves at Prince Chichibi Memorial Stadium in Tokyo. The Teams Western Force – they are desperately looking for a reprieve from criticism with a win over the competition’s newcomers, who have proved to be competitive, and occasionally, dangerous. They will have their hands full, after the Sunwolves claimed their first club win over the Jaguares in Round 9. The home team will be fresh coming off their bye last week, and will be eager to tear into the downtrodden Force side. Expect the…
There is real optimism growing for Force supporters in the west about this Saturday night’s match against the Waratahs at NIB Stadium. The Western Force will be recharged after coming off a bye last week, and the Waratahs will be seeking redemption from last week’s defeat to the Brumbies in Sydney. Despite the Waratahs sitting above the Force in the Australian Conference Standings, there is a real sense that the Waratahs are vulnerable. This Saturday night’s match is tremendously important to both teams. The Waratahs fall from grace as Australia’s premier Super Rugby team has been a real talking point…
There is no denying the fact that Kiwi Super Rugby teams are simply superior to their counter parts from other countries in the Super Rugby Competition. We are seven weeks into the competition and of all the Kiwi teams in the Super Rugby competition they have only shared a total three losses to their international rivals. The question that has been on everyone’s mind is, how do you beat the Kiwi teams? The answer could lie in what normally would be a very unlikely source, the Lions. The Lions are only one of three teams this season that have beaten…
Let me put this frankly, the referees have been very disappointing in the area of cynical play in back play. The discretion exercised by the referees in the Pool stages has created a situation where infringing players benefit from an unjust enrichment. The benefit to these infringing players has led to miscarriage of justice. Let me canvass this by saying referees have an incredibly difficult job and, at the end of the day our magical game can’t be played without them. Now that I have got that off my chest, like let me put this into the context of a…