Western Force coach Dave Wessels says some of his players were reduced to tears following the ARU’s decision to axe the franchise, but he’s urging them not to jump ship just yet.
The Force are on the brink of extinction after being kicked out of the Super Rugby competition by the ARU last Friday.
RugbyWA, backed by billionaire mining magnate Andrew Forrest, will attempt to overturn the decision in the Supreme Court if they win a right of appeal.
Wessels was in his native South Africa when news broke of the Force’s demise, and he has been busy counselling players ever since.
“Everyone’s pretty devastated. I’ve tried to phone each player,” Wessels said.
“I’ve had guys in tears and all sorts of stuff. People at this stage are pretty emotional.
“We’re just trying to stick together as a group.
“We feel like we’ve been building something special here over the last few months. Some of the players who have re-signed have actually taken pay cuts. That’s how much they care about the club and the group
“It would be sad to see the group just dissolved all of a sudden.”
If RugbyWA wins a right of appeal, it could take between four to six weeks before the Supreme Court rules on the matter.
In the meantime, rival Super Rugby franchises could swoop on some of the Force’s biggest stars.
It remains unclear exactly how the ARU are going to split up the players among the four remaining Australian franchises.
Some Force players may even quit Australian rugby altogether in order to take up deals overseas.
Wessels says it’s important for his players to hold off on making any decisions until a timeline is set for the potential court case against the ARU.
That could be known by early this week.
“As those opportunities present for the players, we’re just asking them to tell us about them and talk about them,” Wessels said.
“I understand – particularly for players who have young families – I’d be disappointed if they didn’t think of their families first and foremost.
“I know that all of them want to do the right thing by the club, but I also understand that at some point they’re going to have to make a decision.
“We’re just trying to balance that out by sharing as much information as we can. It’s not over yet.”
The Force finished second in the Australian conference this year.
The franchise boasts one of the most exciting young squads in Australian rugby, with nine players recently selected in an extended Wallabies squad.
Super Goose
Guest
This is what's wrong with Australian rugby, we end up with an entitled bunch of pansies when we need 'men' who don't accept having their guts kicked in for 12 seasons straight! I won't shed any tears for the Farce, I will never forgive them for being the parasitic failures who sucked the code dry and returned only a couple of half arsed players in over a decade.can't wait to 'Get out of Dodge'
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
You forgot 1 part. ARU legally has to cut one team and owns the licence of one team only.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
Twiggy... Forrest...
Paul D
Guest
Why don't you ring twiggy and tell him to buy SANZAR? I think some people have unrealistic expectations of what Forrest can, or is willing to do.
2 Left Feet
Guest
$6,000,000,000 man wants to save his team. ARU has no money but controls the licence that would save his team. Do I need to spell out the solution to your problems? Thought you guys were all smart private school boys.
Train Without A Station
Guest
That would be fair. But is it bias that very few players are selected from a 20s team that is a distance 5th and hasn't won a Super 20s game ever?
Crazy Horse
Roar Pro
Show us the "great big spreadsheet".
Crazy Horse
Roar Pro
Overseas, East Coast. Same difference except you get paid more overseas.
Crazy Horse
Roar Pro
Never been involved in a major trial then TWAS. We are talking about Queens Counsels here in unrestrained full flight. They can and will argue for days over the meaning of a single word.
Crazy Horse
Roar Pro
Stay tuned. They have no idea what is coming but here's a hint. Go and look up the duties of directors.
piru
Roar Rookie
We heard rhetoric but no facts and figures. If they'd come out and said "we need X but only have Y", then perhaps alternatives could have been found. Instead they ran to SANZAAR, offered to cut a team (which had obviously been a favoured plan for some time - see the Force being required to sign over IP) and then got themselves stuck. Now say they needed to find $30 million to solve their problems - that's a problem that can be solved - Own the Force looks to make half of it, Twiggy and the WA Govt supplies the rest, say, but it's something that can be achieved. Say they needed to increase match attendances, again, something that can be addressed. Instead no one knows exactly why they decided to do what they did, no one was told exactly they needed, so initiatives (like Own the Force) were based off of assumptions and guesswork. Just entirely poorly managed from go to whoa, instead of engaging the community to solve a problem, they betrayed it and now money that might have gone to saving all 5 teams is now being spent on lawyers.
Crazy Horse
Roar Pro
Given the obvious NSW bias displayed in the selection of the current Aust Schoolboys that is no indicator at all.
piru
Roar Rookie
I think it's more likely than not that the non Wallabies and almost Wallabies will probably head offshore/
Crazy Horse
Roar Pro
Show us your "great big spreadsheet". Otherwise stop with the obvious fallacy than there was ever any other agenda than to abandon the national footprint and retreat to the east coast.
Crazy Horse
Roar Pro
I never said nib is the biggest or best. What it is is brand new, state of the art with stage 2 already designed to be added when crowd numbers warrant. What it is is a lot better than many grounds other super rugby teams use.
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
Certainly it does suck. But the reality is the support of rugby just isn't there, and it's resulted in financial considerations needing to be followed. Part of it is because rugby was never that popular. Part of it has been Europe inflating player salaries. Part of it has been ARU errors. Part of it has been self interest at all levels. But ultimately, that's reality. We can jump up and down about the exclusion of a team, which ratings tell us we never bothered to watch. Or we can accept that if you don't support something, someday it may be gone as this is professional sport.
Fionn
Guest
You're probably right. The whole situation just stinks. It stinks for the Force if they're cut, it would have stunk for the Rebels if they had been cut, and it would have sucked for the Brumbies if they had been cut. Just a shame for all of Aussie rugby.
Markus
Guest
The only way this situation could get any worse is if the majority of the Force squad end up overseas anyway (or in another code in the case of someone like Rona). Which could very well happen, I mean which of them are going to want to go back to playing club rugby while working full time?
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
Possibly. Let's look back at 2007 then. Those players would be 27 now and we have a good idea how their careers panned out. Cruze Ah-Nau Kotoni Ale Aaron Chapman Joshua Cooper David Feao Damien Fitzpatrick Talalelei Gray Brent Hamlin Robert Horne Angus Leahy Kesomi Lolotonga Timothy MacNamara Sitiveni Mafi David McDuling Jordan McGregor Cameron Mitchell Fine Moeakiola James O’Connor Jake Schatz Nathan Simpson James Slipper Ruan Smith Ben Tapuai Afusipa Taumoepeau Joseph Tomane Matt To’omua Aidan Toua Justin Turner
Link
Guest
TWAS, I know what you were getting at as i knew you would have known who was signed, but here is their chance ..23 is still young, Ready has been terrible this year as has Frisby.Maybe a chance for those i mentioned to get a crack at ousting the above incumbents?? Moore will be gone after 2018. ( Or hopefully before 2018 ) Their are oppurtunities mate.