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Losing Giteau now may be the hit the Force has to take to move on
3/11/2008 1:00:00 AM
If Matt Giteau does ask to leave Perth before next year's Super 14, the Western Force would do well to wish him the best, even if it's through gritted teeth.
Losing Giteau now or in a year will be a massive hit to the fledgling Super 14 organisation. He is clearly its best and most recognisable player.
He gave backline direction to a team which really struggled in its opening year before he joined.
But like the ACT Brumbies had to do when they lost him, the Force would need to pull itself together and move on with whoever remains.
It's a curiosity and probably nothing more that Giteau, if he left, would be the third of the three big-name Brumbies recruits whose time in the west ended prematurely. All for different reasons.
When the Force was announced as Australia's fourth Super rugby province, it was clear it would need to recruit from within the existing provinces. The Force and its sponsors promised fun, success and plenty of cash in Perth and went after the big fish.
By the end of the first brazen recruiting drive the Brumbies were counting themselves lucky to lose only two of their regular starting players and Test squad members, Scott Fava and Matt Henjak.
But a year later the Force struck a massive blow by recruiting Giteau.
He cost a fortune but the Force maintains he has been worth every cent.
Giteau's close friend Henjak was the first of the ex-Brumbies trio to have his career in the west unravel.
An off-field incident while on tour with the Brumbies in South Africa in 2004 came back to haunt him late last year when it was revealed the Force had paid hush money to an alleged assault victim.
Then, early this year, Henjak was axed from the club for a violent attack on teammate Haig Sare during a day-long drinking session.
Like Henjak, Fava's time in the west was marked by off-field controversy. However his muck-ups seemed more out of character.
He failed a couple of club breath-tests at training sessions. Then, for reasons I'm sure he's still trying to fathom himself, he got caught up in the Rottnest Island quokka-throwing scandal.
This year, no doubt with an awareness Richard Brown was ready to succeed him at No8, Fava asked for and was granted a release to return to Sydney.
He has what is probably an unwanted distinction of being the first player to be capped at all four Australian provinces.
Various reasons have been given why the Force has struggled with off-field problems in its early years.
Former Brumbies prop and former Force assistant Ben Darwin said in February a stronger culture of leadership was needed.
''At the Brumbies people's heads are pulled in earlier, and I don't think anyone's pulling them in over there,'' Darwin said.
In the Force's defence, it must be an immensely difficult challenge setting up a football club from scratch, especially when virtually every player has been uprooted from their support networks to be there.
And while the Force is yet to make the Super 14 finals in three seasons, many players have flourished.
The club provided six players in the Wallabies team that played New Zealand on Saturday, including three who had not played Tests before joining the Force.
Strangely, there could even be a positive for the Force in losing Giteau, who has been the player most affected by the Firepower sponsorship shenanigans, in which its recruitment was largely bank-rolled by a dodgy operation.
By Giteau moving on now rather than later, the Force could close the book on that chapter of its history, instead of letting it drag on.
jmoloney@canberratimes.com.au
http://www.canberratimes.com.au:80/n...n/1350082.aspx
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You've got to be kidding me?
Originally Posted by travelling_gerry
even if it's through gritted teeth. 
, it must be an immensely difficult challenge setting up a football club from scratch, especially when virtually every player has been uprooted from their support networks to be there. 
Supporter" starring the #SeaOfBlue
