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Sharpe prediction: no Giteau, no worries
- Wayne Smith
- From: The Australian
- January 20, 2010 12:00AM
NATHAN Sharpe has staked an early claim for the Optimist of the Year award, insisting the Western Force is still a Super 14 finals contender despite losing master playmaker Matt Giteau.
Even with Giteau calling the shots at five-eighth over the past three seasons, the Force still could not qualify for the play-offs. Indeed, a quick glance at how the Perth team fared during that time reveals a quirky but alarming trend -- finishing seventh in 2007, eighth in '08 and ninth in '09.
If the steady drift southward were to continue for a 10th placing in 2010, it would only confirm the expectations of most critics, with Centrebet installing the Force on the 10th line of favouritism at $31, slightly better than the Reds at $51 but still out of sight of the Giteau-improved Brumbies who share the second line at $5.50 with the Bulls, just a nudge behind perennial title contender the Crusaders.
But while Force captain Sharpe is content that so many people are writing off his side, he does not share the view that the loss of Giteau and, to a lesser extent of Drew Mitchell to the Waratahs, is necessarily a shattering blow.
"The thing that people don't realise is that last year we had the personnel to play a certain style of game," said Sharpe, shortly before flying out last night to Cape Town where the Force will play pre-season trials against the Stormers and Sharks over the next week.
"Since last year's Super 14 the game has changed and we're lucky to have recruited a player like (former Springbok five-eighth) Andre Pretorius who controls the game very well. And we've recruited well across the rest of the team as well, particularly in the front row."
Certainly the recruitment of Matt Dunning and former Hurricanes tighthead Tim Fairbrother should add some real grunt to the Force scrum, although the loss of former Wallabies hooker Tai McIsaac is proving difficult to cover.
Meanwhile, former Melbourne Storm NRL player Will Chambers will make his professional rugby debut at outside centre in the Reds' second half XV at Lismore, while Queensland's other significant new signing, Lei Tomiki, will debut at openside flanker in the first half XV.
Meanwhile, former Brumbies backrower Julian Salvi, now one of the form players for Bath in the English Premiership, has emerged as a prime recruitment target for the Melbourne Rebels as the new club starts from scratch to build its 2011 roster.
English press reports indicate Bath is resigned to losing Salvi, a 49-cap Super rugby veteran for the Brumbies, to the new Australian team.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news...-1225821390058