Western Force 2016: The Year of Expansive Rugby

[MI5_Dog]

For all the talk of 2015 being a year to go ‘back to back’ – building on the Force’s breakout year of 2014 – the pre-season build-up was as optimistic as it got for the Force last year.

REVIEWING 2015

2015 was a year to forget as the Western Force went from hero to zero. They floundered at the bottom of the log with three wins from 16 – the Waratahs (twice) and Rebels. To add insult to injury, the Force had the lowest try tally in the completion: 28 to the Highlanders’ 63.

Noting their try-scoring deficiency, the Force has reaffirmed a commitment to play expansive, running rugby. With the raft of new signings, they certainly have the capacity to do so.

PREVIEWING 2016

The 28-0 and 36-24 wins over the Hurricanes and Asia Pacific Dragons respectively in the pre-season showed glimpses of the Force’s ball-in-hand play. Fixing their toothless attack is the first priority, as is bolstering the set-piece and goal-kicking to name a few.

The set-piece malfunctioned at times in 2015, with an 83.5% lineouts’ success rate and 83.9% scrums’ success rate. It iss certainly not helped by injuries to props Faulkner and Van Wyk and the loss of Wilhelm Steenkamp and Sam Wykes.

Another failing was the place-kicking. At 59.4% kicking success rate, the signings of Peter Grant and Jono Lance could remedy the Force’s goal-kicking woes.

Improvements in such areas mentioned should improve their chances in 2016.

read more at http://www.greenandgoldrugby.com/wes...pansive-rugby/

[jono]

I reckon it'll be helped by the departure of wykes

[Stone Cold]

I reckon it'll be helped by the departure of wykes

Who?

[jono]

Who?

Everything. Our pace in attack & defence, the set piece, the lineout.

[jargan83]

I reckon it'll be helped by the departure of wykes

Never heard of him.

[GIGS20]

I reckon it'll be helped by the departure of wykes

Come on, be fair, the scrum only went backwards when he was spewing on everybody's boots.

Admittedly, that was about 50% of the time.....