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Thread: Force v Cats

  1. #1
    Apprentice Uncle Bob's Avatar
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    Force v Cats

    I have been looking for a thread on this game between the two cellar dwellers and haven't found one, so thought I would create one. Being the lone Force member present in the stands of Ellis Park this weekend, I think I will have the first say......

    After a moral victory over the previously unbeaten Crusaders at fortress Subi, John Mitchell's men can go into this game with a truck load of confidence. The side is starting to click and their improved defence and flair in attack seems to have caught opposition sides by surprise. Also, I see there is talk of an early return by Lachlan McKay and Junior P, who would both be very welcome inclusions in the side. Can anyone confirm this for me?? Did I mention we also signed a guy by the name of Matt Giteau this week? Anyone know anything about this guy? Suddenly the pricks in the Eastern States are having a panic attack about the Force dominating Australian rugby and with the possible arrival of Drew Mitchell, Al Kaanar and Toutai Kefu at Subiaco next year, the pricks ought to be very worried...... It’s all good for the Emirates Western Force.

    The Cats, on the other hand, put in a terrible performance against the Bulls at Securicor Loftus. Even with Andre Pretorius back in the side they are easily the worst side in the Super 14. For some unknown reason, South African sides continue to want to kick the ball at every opportunity which is fine by the opposition because without the ball it's impossible to score a try. So expect Pretorius to give us a lot of ball on the weekend!

    However, keep in mind that even a quarter full Ellis Park is an intimidating venue for visiting sides. One only has to look at the Wallabies poor track record there to see that away wins at Ellis Park are very few and far between! Also this is the first game for the Force at altitude so the last 20min will tell a lot about the fitness levels of our guys.....

    One big win for the Force off the field this week was the announcement by SARFU that the bottom SA side in the Super 14 for 2006 will not be relegated. Originally the bottom side for '06 was to be replaced by the ANC supported Southern Spears in '07, but they so crap (they were beaten by a second tier Free State side 48-0 at the start of the year) that SARFU have reversed their position and now face legal action by the SA Government who want a majority black/coloured Super 14 side out of the Eastern Cape. Anyway, the Cats are no longer playing for their survival in the Super 14, which could have been a major motivation for them to come out and play their socks off against us.

    I have FAITH that the Force will record their first Super 14 win at Ellis Park this weekend. This will also ensure that the CATS end up on the bottom of the log too. I reckon the CATS will start strong in the first twenty minutes and then lose interest allowing Staniforth and Co to cut loose in the second half. So my $10 million Zimbabwe Dollars is on a 21-13 Force victory and if we lose, I will be looking for the fastest way out of Ellis Park to my Hotel in Sandton!

    Discuss

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  2. #2
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    bets duely noted Uncle Bob......

    Have fun at the Game

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  3. #3
    (formerly known as Coach) Your Humble Servant Darren's Avatar
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    Western Force Player List:
    1. Gareth Hardy
    2. Tai McIsaac
    3. Angus Scott
    4. Pat O'Connor
    5. Nathan Sharpe ©
    6. David Pusey
    7. Matt Hodgson
    8. Scott Fava
    9. Matt Henjak
    10. Brock James
    11. Digby Ioane
    12. Scott Staniforth
    13. Josh Graham
    14. Haig Sare
    15. Cameron Shepherd

    16. Luke Holmes
    17. David Te Moana
    18. Luke Doherty
    19. Tim Davidson
    20. Chris O'Young
    21. Lachlan MacKay
    22. Junior Pelesasa

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    Veteran Sagerian's Avatar
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    MacKay and Pelesasa coming off the bench will provide a spark at the 60 minute mark, they'll help the recent drop off in pace towards the end of the game and I'm so glad MacKay in particular is back.

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    We are getting closer to our full strength squad again now, apart from Cannon, Hilgendorf and possibly Welborn.
    So long as he plays well I imagine MacKay will be in the starting XV next week however I think it will be a bigger task for Pelesasa to dislodge Graham at this late stage as he has done pretty good job there for mine.
    The pressure is on both of them with the looming threat of Ryan Cross being drafted for '07.
    I am told he was an excellent Union Centre in his schooldays and would make the change rapidly.
    Also much pressure on Davidson to perform with only three games remaining on his contract and "Bam-bam" Pocock now with the touring party on the back of a huge Under 19s World Cup tournament.
    Fitter must be having nightmares now and wondering what happened to the "Western dream" that was when he signed up. As is often the way in pro sport, if you give someone an inch, they take a mile and Scott and Te Moana have certainly earnt their positions. Fitter is left to hope that Connolly may be looking for a different quality in a Tighthead than Mitch, otherwise his Wallaby "career" may well be over before it really began!
    Congratulations to Scotty Fava on his 60th match in Super Rugby, a great milestone andd hopefully plenty more to come in the dark blue and gold.
    The touring party players to be left out are:

    David Fitter
    Tajhon Mailata
    David Pocock
    John Welborn

    Especially following on the back of the two teams respective performances last week, I think we should be pretty excited about our prospects this match however, as Uncle Bob says above, the Ellis Park factor should not be discounted and it should still be a tough encounter.
    My gut feel is the Force by a bit and would love to get the full 5 points on offer as a real confidence builder.

    GO THE FORCE!!!

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    Veteran Contributor frontrow's Avatar
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    Altitude will be a problem, but hopefully the fitness levels are up enough so it will counter this . Plus, keeping the bench fresh till midway through the second half might help. Hopefully we are already well ahead by that stage, with Mad Uncle Bob going off his nut in the stands, cheering like a mad banshee

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    Perhaps the RSPCA will show up to give the kittens a good home. Should be easy to spot Uncle Bob. He will be the only one in the stands

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    Go Uncle Bob! Go the Force! I like 21-13 sounds like a good score - except to get 13 you need score a try!!! 28-12 sounds better, Bonus point for 4 tries and the Andre Pretorious kicks them Cats to another loss again......

    The Western Force went into the Ellis Park changing rooms half time in their Super 14’s game against the Cats.

    Gareth Hardy says to Nathan Sharpe, “Mate, I bored of playing this bunch of losers!”
    “Yeah! Gareth I know what you mean!” said Sharpie, “We’re winning, 50 points to nil.”
    “Let’s go down the pub for a few beers!” suggested Scottie Fava.

    So Sharpie made a Captains decision. He turned to Matt Henjak and said, “Look all the boys are going down the pub for a few pints, I want you to stay here and finish playing the Cats! We’ll see you in there after the game.”

    So one hour later….Matt Henjak turned up at the pub.
    Scott Fava asked him, "what was the final score?"
    Henjak replied,”100 points to 3!”
    A surprised Sharpie turned and said, “You let them score a penalty?”

    Henjak replied, “I could do anything about it, I was in the sin bin at the time!”

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  9. #9
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    Excellent write up Uncle Bob nice work

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  10. #10
    Apprentice Contributor Sweetooth1's Avatar
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    Sad Cats a spent force

    Sad Cats a spent force
    By Wayne Smith
    April 28, 2006

    LAST-placed Western Force has no chance of sneaking away with a debut win when it meets the Cats at Ellis Park early tomorrow (AEST).

    After all, even the local Johannesburg Star newspaper is predicting a 15-point win to the Force, so it is safe to say the Perth team has blown its element of surprise.

    It has, of course, no-one but itself to blame after a spectacular 23-23 draw against the competition-leading Crusaders last Friday - its best result in its debut season.

    But it is a result that satisfied none of the players; even the New Zealand media conceded the unbeaten Crusaders were blessed not to have been defeated.

    The Cats, by comparison, have managed only one win this season: a head-shaking 21-16 victory over the Chiefs in round two.

    The Johannesburg-based team was reduced to 14 men after 38 minutes when second-rower Willem Stoltz was incorrectly sent off by Australian referee Stu Dickinson, who then awarded second-half penalties 11-2 in favour of the Cats.

    It might have been the low point of the season in terms of both the rugby played and the officiating, but it provided the hapless Cats with their only moment of joy.

    Since then, the 2003 and 2004 Super 12 wooden spooners have lost eight consecutive matches and, for good measure, have also now lost inspirational captain Wikus van Heerden to injury.

    A third wooden spoon awaits them if they lose to the Force, but at least that will be the extent of their humiliation after the South African Rugby Union, no doubt acutely aware it would be ridiculous for Johannesburg not to be represented in the Super 14, abandoned its promotion-relegation plans and put the Southern Spears on hold for at least another year.


    Advertisement:
    On the same weekend that the Cats last won, the Force lost outside centre Junior Pelesasa to a broken ankle in the match against the Hurricanes.
    Against all expectations, the former Queensland Reds line-breaker has overcome the injury and surgery to insert a plate in his lower leg to claim a place on the Force bench for this match.

    His return, along with that of former Waratahs playmaker Lachlan MacKay, who was injured in the opening match of the season against the Brumbies, adds some strike power to a Force bench that has lacked impact.

    Force coach John Mitchell, who was as restrained in near-victory last week as he had been in the face of nine successive defeats, does not regard his side's heroic performance against the Crusaders as a pointer to a first win in Johannesburg.

    "I don't dwell on past performances," Mitchell said.

    "I'm just hopeful we can take the momentum from last week's game into this match."

    THE Australian Rugby Union yesterday announced at its annual general meeting a record trading surplus of $9.5 million, the largest in its history with the exception of the Rugby World Cup year of 2003.

    While the Wallabies lost eight of their past nine Tests in 2005, it was a bumper year for member unions, with the ARU allocating them a record $7.3 million in grants.

    Ron Graham was re-elected chairman of the restructured ARU board which, for what is believed to be the first time, includes a director who did not make his way on to the national body via one of the state boards: QRU appointee Terry Jackman, the Tourism Queensland chairman.

    Outspoken QRU chairman Peter Lewis, who this week called on the ARU to provide some much-needed leadership on the player salary issue, said last night he was reassured by the strong mandate the ARU had been given to take tighter control of the contracting process.

    The Australian

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