Force unveil moves to defy heavier Tahs pack
Force unveil moves to defy heavier Tahs pack
12th April 2008, 11:00 WST
Western Force’s lightweight pack aims to deliver a heavyweight performance against the NSW Waratahs in tonight’s Super 14 rugby clash at Subiaco Oval.
Hooker Tai McIsaac revealed the Force scrum — at 875kg the lightest in the competition — had a plan to counter its heavier opposition in the set pieces, which will be so significant in determining who from Australia’s two contenders will jump into the top four in the standings.
The 903kg Waratahs pack will try to wheel the Force scrum to deny Matt Giteau time and space with the ball and the Force will use their effective line-out to attack the throw-ins of Tatafu Polota-Nau, which are sometimes of the heave-and-hope variety. The Force’s two most recent home performances increased the perception they are vulnerable up front.
The Stormers put the Force forwards through the mincer and the Bulls used their power to spin the scrum like a merry-go-round in the first half.
McIsaac acknowledged the Force scrum was under weekly assault but pointed out the team’s record suggested it had held its own.
“We’re the lightest pack in Super 14 so, yeah, we’re used to it,” he said. “We do a lot of work to prevent our opponents disrupting our scrum.”
What the Force forwards lack in mass they gain in mobility. They upped the tempo after half-time last weekend and in the end the puffing Pretorians couldn’t get big bodies to where it mattered.
The statistics underline the Force’s emphasis on mobility. They are among the leaders in possession, favouring repetitive ram raids up the guts through the likes of Nathan Sharpe, McIsaac and Richard Brown to suck in defenders before releasing their speedsters into space out wide.
Waratahs coach Ewen McKenzie feels his team is well suited to counter the Force’s style of play. The Tahs lead the league in tackles made and their rushing defence has conceded four fewer points a game than the home team.
“The Force make the least tackles of any team so the trick might be to get the ball, hold on and make them tackle,” McKenzie said.
If the Tahs have the bigger and more experienced pack, the Force should have the edge against the visitors’ inexperienced back line, which includes Robert Horne, 18, who is making his first start at outside centre.
He and fly-half Kurtley Beale, 19, can expect a lot of traffic their way as the Force backs probe for weaknesses.
• In Dunedin last night, South Africa’s Sharks overcame an early 11-point deficit to beat the Otago Highlanders 19-17 and maintain their unbeaten record.
Twelfth-placed Otago threatened one of the bigger upsets of the season when they scored early tries to lead the second-placed Sharks 14-3. But the Durban-based Sharks scored the only points of the second period — a try and a long-range penalty.
DAVE HUGHES
http://www.thewest.com.au/default.as...ontentID=67529
