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Nick Taylor
Tuesday, January 10, 2017 11:05AM
Shaun Berne admits being a little wary taking the massive step into the unknown as the new Western Force attack coach.
Just one year after hanging up his boots Berne has to fix last season’s problems that left the Force as Super Rugby’s lowest tries and points scorers.
The former Waratahs playmaker who made more than 200 appearances for NSW, Bath, and Leinster in a 16-year career spent last season in elite player development with the powerhouse Irish club.
“I’m enjoying it but it’s a scary industry. There are only coaches waiting to be sacked or you’ve been sacked,” Berne said as the Force squad started their major block of pre-season training this week.
His appointment to a new-look coaching team means he comes with no pre-conceived ideas about players and has promised the shackles will be off when it comes to attack.
“Are the Western Force with Shaun Berne as one of their coaches going to be a kicking team, a running team, a passing team?” he says.
“We’re going to try and do all those things but when we do them and why we do them….we’ll keep the opposition guessing.
“How does that look when you break it down to rugby specifics – it’s total rugby.
“You can’t be a one trick pony. We need variation.
“There are no numbers on backs. It’s playing what you see I front of you.
“We will keep using what has worked but we need to clear up the stuff that hasn’t worked, identify those areas that need change.
“I’m trying not to have too many pre-conceived ideas on players. I will judge players on what I see.”
Among 14 new faces are exciting local products Curtis Rona and Chance Peni who have returned to their rugby roots after spells in the Nationa rugby league.
“New players like them are not influenced by what the Force have done before. They will bring a variation to our game,” Berne said.
“They will bring something different, they have their ideas how rugby should be played. They bring ideas how you beat a defender, how you create space
“I’m going to give these guys a shape about what the Western Force is going to try and do, but when they’ve got the ball the decision is for them to make.
“Curtis Rona gets the ball and there’s 20 metres of space around him, what Curtis Rona does makes is what makes him a sought after player.
“I don’t want to put shackles on players.
“I don’t want to bring in brilliant attacking players and coach them to not be brilliant attacking players.”
Berne was sought out for the Waratahs by Michael Cheika before he left for the Wallabies top job and his lack of experience does not worry coach Dave Wessels, himself a rookie and the youngest ever Super Rugby coach.
“Shaun thinks about attack differently than we have in Australia in the past. He understands the game very well and he is passionate about what we want to do,” Wessels said.
https://thewest.com.au/sport/rugby-u...-ng-b88351124z
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