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Western Force recruit David Hill to make debut against Queensland Reds
By Jon Geddes
March 12, 2010 Former All Blacks five-eighth David Hill faces the big challenge of marking in-form Queensland Reds No. 10 Quade Cooper when he debuts for Western Force in Brisbane on Sunday.
The performances of the two playmakers and how they lead their teams around the paddock will be crucial in deciding the winner of the Australian derby.
"Quade has come a long way in the past couple of months from the end of the Wallabies season last year to where he's at now," says Force and Australia assistant coach Richard Graham.
"He has played exceptionally well and a credit to him because he was obviously under a lot of pressure early."
Reds coach Ewen McKenzie says Cooper has a new-found maturity building on where he was last season.
Hill recently joined the Force after a stint in Japan as a replacement for their injured marquee player, former Springbok pivot Andre Pretorius. And Graham says he will provide the team with a lot of experience, direction and control.
"He is physically a big man so he is going to get over the gain line -- whether he carries the ball himself or uses the people around him," Graham said.
With Hill to start at five-eighth, it is likely that Wallabies utility James O'Connor will switch to No. 12 - at least in attack.
While the Force have yet to win, McKenzie says his side learnt in their surprise win over the Chiefs last week that the position on the table means nothing.
"And I don't think you can take anything for granted in a local derby," McKenzie said.
"We are giving them the utmost respect. We have watched their three games and they were right in it in all of them with 15 to go."
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,...002381,00.html