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Believe it or not, the Force have the cattle to succeed

The Western Force do have the talent to remain in Super Rugby, but they need a new coach. (AAP Image/Theron Kirkman)
Roar Rookie
5th April, 2016
19

The past few weeks have seen much debate over the depth of Australian rugby and there have been several suggestions of reducing the number of Australian teams.

It has been painful as a Force supporter to see public opinion nominate my home team for the axe, with talk of moving it to western Sydney as an alternative.

I am not here to excuse the poor performances of the Western Force; when rugby is a professional sport, there is no excuse for poor play. Yet while the players must take responsibility for team results, the root of the Force’s troubles rest on the shoulders of its coaching staff.

The Force do not have the same concentration of talent that the Waratahs, Brumbies and, to a lesser extent, the Rebels have. There are some players who have been lacklustre, with Peter Grant proving to be rather inferior to Jono Lance this season and the sniping runs of Alby Mathewson are predictable at times.

Yet there are those at the Force who have shown to be on the rise. Adam Coleman has been increasingly touted for Wallabies honours. Kyle Godwin shows promise when he’s not injured, Jono Lance has proven to be a gift at fly-half and it is nice to see that Dane Haylett-Petty has been invited by Michael Cheika to the latest Wallabies training camp on Cockatoo Island.

Yet the progress of these players and the Force has been hindered by the coaching incompetency of Michael Foley. Many of you know how poor he was in charge of the Waratahs and he’s carried his poor form with him.

It’s become apparent that the successful season of 2014 was an anomaly with Foley in charge. The Force should follow in the footsteps of the Reds and sack him in order to have a hope of improving in the long term.

Sadly, Foley seems to be part of a wider crisis of coaching credibility facing Australian rugby at the moment, with the Reds job vacant and Daryl Gibson looking increasingly out of his depth.

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As a Western Force and Australian rugby fan, my loyalty to the sport won’t be lost with a run of poor form. But this won’t cut it with the majority of casual rugby fans who will easily switch to league or AFL.

This must change.

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