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SHARPE RETURNS, McISAAC AND POCOCK TO START AGAINST HURRICANES
Emirates Western Force skipper Nathan Sharpe will return to the line-up on Friday night when the West Aussies do battle against the Hurricanes from Wellington at Subiaco Oval.
Sharpe was a late withdrawal from last week’s game against the Waratahs after suffering an injury at training but he is back to full fitness.
Moving into the starting 15 for the first time this Investec Super 14 season are hooker Tai McIsaac and openside flanker David Pocock.
McIsaac swaps his spot on the bench with Brendan Cannon as part of a rotation policy, just as David Pusey will start at lock for Rudi Vedelago.
Pocock’s promotion reflects his strong performances off the bench this season, in particular his accuracy and influence at the breakdown in both attack and defence.
Flanker Richard Brown, also a strong contributor, moves to the blindside.
Coming into the 22 for the first time this year is winger Digby Ioane, who replaces the injured Haig Sare. Also on the injury list is flanker/lock Luke Doherty.
Emirates Western Force head coach John Mitchell said the Hurricanes would be the Force’s biggest test so far, with speed and strength across the park.
He said they played a different brand of football to the one Australian and three South African teams the Force had played this season,
“They are counter-attack specialists and we can’t afford to make too many errors,” Mitchell said.
“I thought our boys showed character and guts to come back from a 13 point deficit last week but the trick is not to give the opposition a head start,” he said.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – this competition is so tight, that only a few errors separate a number of teams and to avoid those mistakes, you have to remain focused for a full 80 minutes.”
Mitchell said Hurricanes lock Paul Tito was a good leader in the pack and the experience of Tana Umaga and Conrad Smith would make for a tough contest.
“Jimmy Gopperth has shown some good form and you can’t give the likes of Ma’a Nonu too much space,” he said.
The squad is:
1. Gareth Hardy
2. Tai McIsaac
3. Troy Takiari
4. David Pusey
5. Nathan Sharpe (c)
6. Richard Brown
7. David Pocock
8. Scott Fava
9. Matt Henjak
10. Matt Giteau
11. Cameron Shepherd
12. Junior Pelesasa
13. Ryan Cross
14. Scott Staniforth
15. Drew Mitchell
16. Brendan Cannon
17. Angus Scott
18. Rudi Vedelago
19.Matt Hodgson
20. Chris O’Young
21. James Hilgendorf
22. Digby Ioane
RUGBYWA MEDIA RELEASE
Wednesday 7 March 2007
"The only trophy we won this day, was the blood and sweat we left on the pitch.... and it was enough"
"Rugby may have many problems, but the gravest is undoubtedly that of the persistence of summer."
Chris Laidlaw, New Zealand rugby player and sportswriter. Mud in Your Eye: A Worm's Eye View of the Changing World of Rugby (I 973).
Glad to see Cannon benched. His line out throws were horrible last week.
Still a pretty handy team despite the changes.
Even if only a limited opportunity Diggers will have to shine to keep his spot.
Will be a great test for Crossie if Tana is playing after missing last week.
And a moment of truth for Bam-Bam with his first genuine start (rather than a S14 blooding Round 14 06).
We are far better placed for a strong shoing compared to the dissaray we were in at Round 2 last year.
Here's to the first home win boys![]()
"Bloody oath we did!"
Nathan Sharpe, Legend.
Unfortunately so far this year McIsaac's haven't been much better UTFOriginally Posted by Use The Force
Hopefully plenty of work has been done this week and they won't have the crosswind that was in Sydney.
"Bloody oath we did!"
Nathan Sharpe, Legend.
I still want Sheps and Mitch to swap.
I think we all want Shep and Mitch to swap - Great to see Digby back in the 22 - but the depth is annoying - don't want anyone to come off either
I really hope this is the one - they deserve it
61 years between Grand SlamsWas the wait worth it - Ya betta baby
This is going to bea tough game, the Stormers didn't do us any favours by thumping them last week! I think Mitch has had his look at the team and made some changes which will work in our favour. I think the forwards have been less than they could be for the last couple of weeks and that surely makes it hard for the backs to shine. Let's hope the benchings send a message to the whole team!
C'mon the![]()
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Should be a tight one, definately will 'acquire' from somewhere for my own personal rugby records. Force to win by a draw.
Laura Force Addict v Chook scrabble-off on Facebook: laura & Force Addict 0 | chook 9
Gigsa made me do it
"He who conquers others is strong; he who conquers himself is mighty." – Lao Tzu
Good to see Stanners is healthy too
Exile
Port Macquarie
"Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard ya hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done! Now if you know what you’re worth then go out and get what you’re worth. But ya gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody! Cowards do that and that ain’t you! You’re better than that!" - Rocky Balboa
Awesome to see Bam- Bam is getting a start, watch out for him he will be a star. Also great to see Digby back in the squad, hope he gets a run and gets a few good touches.
Every forwards dream is to become a back...
its a joke that the two best things to come out of Super 14-06 are cooling their heels on the wings. its a joke. mitchell has done virtually nothing at all this year. pelesasa won't pass. to beat agressive sides like the caines, we need spanner and sheps in key positions to straighten the backline ect..
hopfully if nonu and umunga are out still force should get up over a majorly depleated canes team and they can break this darn "hoodoo" they all keep talking about
Nice to see Staniforth will be available, but Ioane coming in is no surprise if only for his tackling (injury to Sare or not). However, I'm am a little surprised that the backline has stayed the same. To my mind, this week is going to be a game of possession rather than position and I thought Hilgendorf might have been back as 10 with Giteau moving to 12 to distribute either side to players running straight. If they stick with the current game plan and kick it down the throats of Jane and Fa'atau, they will have to play out of their skins in defense. They can also expect plenty of attention at the line-outs too.
This is the week is where we really start to find out what the lads are made of this year. They have probably done as well as anyone would have expected pre-season but, to be honest, they could have been 5-0-0. More importantly, they should have been. If any of the teams they aspire to compete with had found themselves in their position against the Highlanders, Lions or Waratahs, I have no doubt they would have taken a deep breath, focussed and got it done. We have already heard the phrases "we went to sleep", "we started to play 50/50 football" and the like this year, and if the Force keeps the Hurricanes in the game they'll be lucky to come away with a win (ask the Blues or the Brumbies).
What I'm hoping to see is the commitment and ruthlessness we saw a glimpse of against the Stormers - no easing up and no relaxing, get the foot on the throat and keep it there 'til there are no more signs of life.
Will the Hurricanes go quietly? Doubt it (the Stormers needed two intercepts to put them away)
Can the Force win this game? Hell yes
Will they? I can't wait to find out.
looks a good line up on paper hopefully this can be the one, dont know about the switch at hooker thats all.
GO THE FORCE
Could you perhaps define virtually nothing?Originally Posted by littleleck
must have been a different guy that scored a try last week, and was another guy that had a close to man of the match performance in South Africa against the Bulls. I don't think that you will get any argument about his performance against the Highlanders, but he has done well since then.
It is interesting that no one is asking why Cameron Shepherd hasn't been dropped, at least from the goal kicking duties. Or do fans of the Western Force only hate the new guys and Mitchell is the new fall guy since Henjak has started playing well.
Exile
Port Macquarie
"Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard ya hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done! Now if you know what you’re worth then go out and get what you’re worth. But ya gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody! Cowards do that and that ain’t you! You’re better than that!" - Rocky Balboa