Wests Scarborough’s Anneka Stephens and Wanneroo’s Taylor Waterson are the latest players to re-sign for the Western Force for the 2026 Swyftx Super Rugby Women’s season.
The re-signing of the back-row pair takes the Force’s 2026 Super W squad to 20 members. The Force’s first game of the 2026 Super W season is Saturday 13 June away to Fijian Drua, with pre-season kicking off last month.
Stephens, 36, is an integral member of the Force squad, finishing runner-up in last season’s Rebecca Clough medal voting despite a mid-season knee injury.
The 36-year-old Wests Scarborough flanker is an influential leader within the group, twice winning the Force Woman Award (2022 and 2025). She was also the Rebecca Clough medal runner-up in 2022.
The mother-of-four, who has Cook Islands heritage, won the 2024 Sue Roberts Trophy for best and fairest in WA’s Fortescue Premier Grade while playing for Wanneroo. She has earned 13 Super W caps, scoring two tries, since debuting in 2021.
Waterson is a foundation Force player, who returned to the Club for the 2025 season after clocking up eight Super W appearances with one try in the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
The 25-year-old back-rower was unable to make an impact last Super W due to injury, but helped Wanneroo to the 2025 Fortescue Premier Grade title, before enjoying a good run in the North vs South Women’s Series at the back-end of 2025.
Waterson, who works as a veterinarian, spent time in New Zealand playing for Manawatu Cyclones in the Farah Palmer Cup as she completed her studies.
Force Super W head coach Dylan Parsons said: “Neeks was another really important signing for us. She’s a cultural architect in our team. She’s so highly respected in the team and the community.
“She’s a great player who was really influential in the first few rounds last year, until she unfortunately got injured in the Penina Pasifika game. After that, you could feel her absence.
“We really want to have her fit and firing and playing big minutes in 2026, because we know how important she is for us.
“It’s great to re-sign Taylor too. She really impressed us with her attitude and commitment when she came into our set-up in late 2024 and we’re excited about what she can do in 2026.
“There’s untapped potential in Taylor with her physicality and competitiveness, which we’re hoping to unlock after more time in our program having shown some good signs in Premier Grade and our North vs South Series.”
2026 Western Force Swyftx Super Rugby Women’s squad
Katalina Amosa, Ai Dickson, Nami Dickson, Zoe Elliott, Grace Freeman, Nicole Ledington, Michaela Leonard, Hera-Barb Malcolm Heke, Ngamihi Monk, Sera Naiqama, Alapeta Ngauamo, Hannah Palelei, Allana Sikimeti, Cecilia Smith, Anneka Stephens, Pia Tapsell, Brooklyn Teki-Joyce, Braxton Walker, Taylor Waterson, Sammy Wood
