This season saw the 2021 Western Force team become the first in the club’s history to qualify for the Super Rugby finals in just our second season back in the competition.
I would like to acknowledge that our return to Super Rugby and finals berth would not have been possible without our passionate Members, fans and partners.
The Western Force players, coaches, front office staff and support staff would like to thank our loyal Members, fans, and all rugby stakeholders in WA for their support in 2021.
This year’s historic results were built upon the strong foundations put in place by Dr Andrew Forrest AO and Nicola Forrest AO over the past three years to keep rugby alive in WA. In addition to their efforts, our rugby community and commercial partners have played a pivotal role in our recent progress and success.
To those who have been rugby supporters all their lives, and to those who attended their first game in 2021, the Western Force salute you!
When we had no Super Rugby you all stood strong behind the vision of the Forrest family and the direction we were heading in as a club.
What we have seen this year is incredible growth. Membership numbers grew 99% compared to 2020, with 13,000 fans at our final two home matches, and 13 Force Fortescue Academy, Future Force Foundation and homegrown players taking to the field in our final game of the season against the Bay of Plenty.
The Western Force Fortescue Academy is going from strength to strength in its inaugural year, with Junior Wallabies selections, Force contracts and state representative honours just reward for the hard work of the coaches and players.
This week the club has signed off on all 14 recommendations from our comprehensive external review on how we can improve as an organisation and develop our high-performance program to be the best in Australia.
The new high-performance structure will have a strong focus on quality coaching, skill and youth development, as well as participation growth, with exciting new developments in the Rugby Schools Cup competition in collaboration with RugbyWA to be announced soon.
It is important that we leverage our success in 2021 and provide more opportunities for young boys and girls to play Rugby in WA.
Growing Super Rugby is an exciting challenge and I believe the introduction of Fijian Drua and Moana Pasifika is a step in the right direction.
As a club, we want to compete against the best teams in the best competition in the world and I believe this further cements that ambition. The Force Members and fans will really enjoy what the new teams bring to Super Rugby and we can’t wait to take them on in 2022. This is a great opportunity for everyone involved.
We are determined to achieve more success in 2022 and reach the next level. We want to develop a coaching pathway that demands results through skill development and build a team to succeed in every aspect of professional sport and win. This will continue to guide the Force for years to come.
We are working hard on a very exciting new Membership campaign, which will be launched in October. For those looking to join the Force family in 2022, you can register your interest before the launch through our website here.
In 2022, we will be the ‘Leading Force’ and we are ‘Here to Win’ both on and off the field.
