Pirates loss Forces gain

[Perth Red]

NRLWA and NRL clubs are doing a good job in developing talent for union. First Rona, now Peni, it will be Waqa Blake next. Now if only they had a home town NRL club to sign for.....


The Western Force have continued to add strength to their backline with the signing of former Western Force Academy member and Wests Tigers Rugby League young gun Chance Peni for the 2017 Super Rugby season.
After two years with the Tigers the former Junior Kiwi and capped Cook Islands rugby league representative says he is excited to return to his home state and begin the next chapter of his young career with the Western Force.
“It’s a good win for rugby union to lure players back from league. In both Chance and Curtis Rona we have two very good rugby league players who have strong union backgrounds and they are going to make a big impact next season.”

https://www.westernforce.com.au/article/peni-drops-western-force

 

[Dogs Of War]

Rona and Chance were WF juniors anyway. Not sure I see your point. Be nice if we had a team in WA. Until then some players are going to want to play a form of Rugby in WA, and Force is there only option if they want to get some decent money out of it. Not sure we are developing talent for Union. They developed it for us.

 

[Nuke]

Curtis Rona, initially, was a League junior. I have team sheets in my backroom from his Under 10's days when he was playing for Joondalup Giants RLC. He then went to union when the Force kicked off as there was a more logical pathway for him, and he came back to League when the West Coast Pirates were relaunched (pun not intended) and was a Pirate and Giant (when the Pirates SG Ball season was finished), and it was playing for the Pirates that he was picked up by the Roosters, played Holden Cup, and went up to Nth Qld and Canterbury respectively from there.

 

[Perth Red]

Rona and Chance were WF juniors anyway. Not sure I see your point. Be nice if we had a team in WA. Until then some players are going to want to play a form of Rugby in WA, and Force is there only option if they want to get some decent money out of it. Not sure we are developing talent for Union. They developed it for us.

That is exactly my point. RL develops them but as no home club they go back to union. A lot of kids play union and league, especially the good ones. Sadly only one code has a professional option in Perth for them. If we can't have a team because there isn't enough talent then this will never change and there will never be enough talent.

 

[taipan]

There's also the possibility the Force may be flicked ,as SANZAR is looking at streamlining.Many union pundits say there are too many Super clubs in this country.

 

[Dogs Of War]

There's also the possibility the Force may be flicked ,as SANZAR is looking at streamlining.Many union pundits say there are too many Super clubs in this country.

Force won't be flicked just due to time zone, unless SA is got rid of, in which case bye bye Perth. That's probably the time for the NRL to expand.

 

[flippikat]

Force won't be flicked just due to time zone, unless SA is got rid of, in which case bye bye Perth. That's probably the time for the NRL to expand.

SA brings tv money to SANZAR/super Rugby, due to it's large rugby-mad community and shared timezone with Europe.

Despite the travel headaches it causes, NZ and Aus would be mad to ditch SA - the tv timezones just work against it spinning decent overseas rights money. To be honest, Perth probably got their Super Rugby team before Melbourne because it helped the travel logistics to-and-from SA. (if your team is stopping over there, why not play a game?)

The only way I can see a Aus/NZ ditch South Africa is if they have a cashed-up & competitive replacement market that fits their timezones better. Maybe that's an ulterior motive for adding the Japan & Argentina sides and talking about possibly adding Super Rugby teams on the west coast of the USA?

 

[Dogs Of War]

But the problem is that no one cares when they play SA sides. Their time zones don't work and it's as if the Australian teams have disappeared off the face of the earth.

 

[taipan]

Force won't be flicked just due to time zone, unless SA is got rid of, in which case bye bye Perth. That's probably the time for the NRL to expand.

At present the Force are pushing for fans to dig deep and become a community club.That's how desperate the situation is.

The ARU don't have the loot to keep underpinning them.Time zone is a factor, but economic realities the final decider.

The SANZAR situation has become an unwieldly mess.Bringing in other countries,when local Oz rah rah fans cannot relate to these clubs,has watered down the attendances, the TV ratings and the competitiveness of the comp.

 

[Dragon Slayer]

NRLWA and NRL clubs are doing a good job in developing talent for union. First Rona, now Peni, it will be Waqa Blake next. Now if only they had a home town NRL club to sign for.....


The Western Force have continued to add strength to their backline with the signing of former Western Force Academy member and Wests Tigers Rugby League young gun Chance Peni for the 2017 Super Rugby season.
After two years with the Tigers the former Junior Kiwi and capped Cook Islands rugby league representative says he is excited to return to his home state and begin the next chapter of his young career with the Western Force.
“It’s a good win for rugby union to lure players back from league. In both Chance and Curtis Rona we have two very good rugby league players who have strong union backgrounds and they are going to make a big impact next season.”

https://www.westernforce.com.au/article/peni-drops-western-force

How about you do us all a favour and f**k off to Union too!!

 

[LESStar58]

meh.

Force will go to the wall along with the Rebels soon enough.

 

[Perth Red]

Not sure how the public ownership is going to help them long term, will give a $5mill cash injection to them which they might be able to cover losses with for a few years but unless they start making the finals cant see much changing. I don't think the death of the Force helps or hinders a future NRL club in Perth other than less competition for jnrs. I cant see WA rah rah fans jumping ship to NRL anytime soon (except maybe kiwi ones who seem less class focussed on the two games than saffers and poms)