Force Brumbies Game day

[DazloT]

Great to be in with a chance for once, what a year. Next year we are going to play 80 mins like we do the last 20 mins. And Haylett-petty, do that every game next year. And mathewson, wykes....keep it going boys, next year is Force-aggedon (feel free to come I p with alternatives).

When are renewals due?

[WFDom]

Didn't give up..... that's all I wanted.

[Macattack]

What great value the ARU got from their cash invested in the Force this year - gonna write to them and discuss the issue in a little more detail, with comparisons - will be very interested to see what response I get

Well done to our boys for the season, we achieved far more than our on-paper lineups would suggest we should've achieved against some glamorous oppositions. Thanks for the ride, will be there for my 10th straight season in 2015.

[jombi]

Apologies to everyone, I've gone to 2 games this year (tags and ponies on the east coast) and they've lost both!

Was very disappointed with how the ponies members acted with the booing, even the SFS members aren't that bad.

Force did well this year and I'm glad I was wrong with the whinge I posted after the loss to the tags at the start of the year, Foleys first year under his full reign has definitely paid off, and he has recruited well, just need to not play so tight!

And thanks to all the people who gave me props for my 'vintage' force jersey I wore tonight.

[Rex Messup]

I thought the team was disappointing after the June break. The defence has been really poor in the last few games. The Reds were utterly inept which s why we were able to win one of the worst games of the season. It was disappointing because many of the great wins of the season were built on a committed defence with a mongrel attitude. To roll over so meekly against the blues and brumbies was disappointing. However, I will take the 9 wins for the season however after the last 3-4 year's and especially after the first two performances of the season when it looked like more of the same. Great year guys. Injuries affected the final outcome. One more win would of got us there. We won most of the close games this year. When we lost we got belted. We could add some backs with speed and talent. The forwards were magnificent again.

[SNOB]

We need some weight with speed! Our centres are good but we need Godwin back, he has that line breaking skill.
I'd love to see some more centres of the Nonu build.
I think our whole team has done far above real expectations this year but we still look to be small compared to other teams.
I'm sure Foles will ave a plan!
Thanks guys for a fun season!

[terrycobner]

Well done to all the squad and management. We have gone from (almost) an absolute rock bottom, to taking on and beating most of the top teams. It would have been great to make the finals but we have to admit that at the moment we just dont have the quality in the team overall, especially the backs. Tonight there were also lots of small errors - line out tackles, kick chase , unnecessary penalties which gave the ponies too many freebies.


There have been moments of disappointment this year,but there has not been a moment when I doubted the spirit commitment and effort of all the players, and thank you to all of them for putting in the effort this year.

I would like to say that I was very happy to see the WA flag in the changing room before the team came out. Finally I am hoping that the players understand that they are not only playing for themselves but representing us, the sea of blue, Perth and Western Australia. Let us stick it to the Eastern States I say.

Lets build on this year by getting some depth in our backs, developing a running game , one that is able to score tries, as in the end that is what cost us.


I want to thank all the team for their unbelievable effort in every game.

Go the Force, I'll be there too for the 10 th year,

yours disapointed,
Terry

[hertryk]

What great value the ARU got from their cash invested in the Force this year - gonna write to them and discuss the issue in a little more detail, with comparisons - will be very interested to see what response I get

Well done to our boys for the season, we achieved far more than our on-paper lineups would suggest we should've achieved against some glamorous oppositions. Thanks for the ride, will be there for my 10th straight season in 2015.

Same here! 10 years! Boy OH ! Boy! The Awards Nite is going to be extra special this Year!

[Kept One]

Just like to say that I am happy with the efforts of the Team this year. They gave us some great games and made other teams take note and see us as a threat. Sad that we missed out on a finals spot but proud to be part of the Sea of Blue and proud of the efforts of the Team as a whole.

[Alison]

Well said KeptOne!

[chibi]

Hard to believe, but my disillusionment was so high, I was on the cusp of NOT renewing my membership at the end of last season. Those sorts of thoughts have been completely blown away this year, and I'll be renewing on the first day it becomes available. Most impressed with how much GUTS were shown by the Force in a number of fixtures this year. Usually a team has to do that only once or twice in a season, but these guys were able to dig deep and win in the face of adversity so many times, that it became one of the team's characteristics. Unfortunately we really got knocked off the rails by the June break, maybe next year the guys might go to the Singapore Tens like the Blues did, or do something else to keep them match-hardened.

Looking back, I often wonder what Richie Brown would have thought about it, watching from Japan. It would have been interesting to see him at his barnstorming best in the 2014 edition of the Western Force.

I think Badger will be back, the experience in Japan might add nuances to his game. He's been exposed a bit in defence this year, especially in the speed department, and you can't defend against Japanese backs with your feet planted, their ability to use changes in pace and take advantage of space will force him to refine his defensive positioning.

Can't wait to see the improvements in players next year. Tuatara-Morrison and Ebersohn were nowhere last year, now they're coming along. Tuatara-Morrison needs to sure up his defence also, but next year he'll have Godwin back to marshal him about. Ebersohn has refined his decision-making from last year, so I'll be curious to see how much better he is next season, hopefully his attacking kicks will improve too. We might be lucky he isn't the complete package as yet, if so, the Springboks would definitely have called him up from under the ARU's noses! It'll be good to see Rasolea and Brache get their backline positions set, wherever they are, and given the chance to flourish. I wish we could get something more out of Dellit and Ed Stubbs, but sometimes things don't work out. Maybe Stubbs'll come good next year.

There's some real forward talent there. I like the open-field yardage guys like Tetera Faulkner and Heath Tessman bring when they come onto the field. If there was an "Australia A" programme, Tessman should be the starting hooker. Love to see a full season from Alcock, he can develop into a real menace to the opposition. There were some games where our scrum was kicking arse too, which was great. I'd also love it if we backed our line-out maul more often, especially if we could vary the set-up.

If I had to pick negatives, I suppose it's that the team's structure disappears sometimes, and they struggle to get it back. Sometimes, their phase-play dissolves into telegraphed one-out hit-ups and we end up going backwards. It would be great if we could fall back on rehearsed runners hitting it at pace like the old Brumbies sides, as it would give us the option to kick less; unless of course the game has changed too much since then. Another thing too, is that when we have numbers but no space, they lack the natural instinct to call in players to drive the ball carrier spontaneously. Hopefully that sort of all-round cohesion will develop in a year's time.

It would be nice to see the team get the "OH MY GAWD! THAT WAS A SHIT PERFORMANCE!" problem out of their system for good. It was a damn shame to see it re-occur out of nowhere against the Blues, and it probably cost us the season in the end.

Playing devil's advocate, I have a question mark on Hugh McMeniman. I wonder whether he plays for a Wallaby jersey and not for a Force victory? I feel like that sometimes. I dunno how transfers work, but if a big Euro club offered a big-money transfer for him, do the Force get a big pay-off out of it? If so, then I say take it.

But hey, little things, little things. There's a full season for the Perth Spirit (Western Force "A" if you like) coming up, so if they can continue on their upward trend, keep their on-field structures and trust their attacking abilities (which we DO have, contrary to the beliefs of some Eastern Seaboard scribes) then next season will be a cracker!

RugbyWA? Are you there? I'd like to re-new my membership please.

[palitu]

In the email sent last night they said


Don’t miss your chance to be a part of it with Memberships available from Monday, 28 July! Visit

So you shouldn't have to wait too long!

[Alison]

Chibi - MMM is leaving the Force for Japan at the end of this season. He's been released from his Force (and ARU?) contract I think. We need to look for a replacement for him.

[chibi]

Good, I didn't think he had taken the team to heart. I hope Walton develops well.

[valzc]

Could be right Chibi, could never say Rory doesn't have the heart! Just needs to control it! Haha! Still think there shoulda been a spot for Pheonix that's a loss.