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So, we are three games away from the finals, and only five teams realistically having a chance to make it through.
NEDLANDS
Neddies are there and will be minor premiers, despite their wheels falling off at the business end of the season. They were always going to lose their Force mercenaries, and they have factored that in by making sure they won enough games early while they were available. They also secured enough second stringers to have a viable team when the mercenaries took off back to where they came from after the Super 15 season.
What they didn't count on was a string of late season injuries, and in particular losing Nathan Roberts. Without him they are a jelly looking for a spine, and they haven't found it yet.
Can they go on in the finals and make a fist of it? I don't think so, unless they spend a fortune enticing back their pre registered Force guys. With their new clubroom expenses and a cost conscious committee, I think they'll elect to take a hit this year and consolidate their finances.
ASSOCIATES
Very impressive lately. They are the black knight of WA rugby. Even when by rights they're dead, buried and cremated, they keep coming back. Last Saturday against Palmyra was an example of this. In the first half they were riseable pussys. Yet in the second half I have never seen such a persistent, relentless 40 minutes of attacking football in my life. Soaks managed to obtain and retain 98% percent of possession throughout that half, and they never stopped attacking the strongest defensive line that has ever worn Palmyra colours. Like any cashed up outfit, they have bought or brought in some replacement talent at the right time of the season, and, unlike Nedlands, they anticipated their needs correctly. They'll be one of the two grand final teams.
PALMYRA
The guy that writes the motherhood statements for the RugbyWA website on local rugby each week calls them the quiet achievers evey time they have an unexpected win, and ignores them the rest of the season. Bollocks to that. Palmyra got together a stable of very useful players pre season, and took Hansie's advice and secured the services of several Force recruits before they landed in WA. With their help they kept themselves in touch all season. But Paly have had a spate of horrific injuries over the last four weeks and with the Force guys gone, they are in a worse state than Nedlands in that regard. Except unlike Nedlands, Paly still have a spine, which was more than evident in defence against Soaks last weekend. They'll make the four because the cards are now stacked that way, but whether they'll go further will depend on miracle cures and snake oil.
UNIVERSITY
I don't know enough about University this year to make any comment other than that their Force players have been excellent value every game the've played and that Uni have been crap most games they haven't. I have great respect for Boyd Herewini their wily president, and suspect he's got a few aces up his sleeve that he's keeping in reserve. I hope for the sake of the other teams in the finals that Wykes, Cummins and Pocock make the Wallabies, or he'll be flying them back from Sydney, all expenses and a hefty cheque paid, at taxpayers expense, of course.
COTTESLOE
Less said, sooner mended. By me, anyway.
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Originally Posted by jarrad
