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WHEN Western Force outside-centre Nick Cummins looks at his struggling team's next opponent, the rapidly improving Melbourne Rebels, he sees several things - a dangerous back line guided by a superstar, big wingers who put the team on the front foot and also a "bit of backyard footy".
"They'll have a crack," Cummins said of the Rebels yesterday. "They're playing like a top-two team, they've got nothing to lose … they're going really well.
"They've got [Kurtley] Beale at [No.] 10 now and he takes the line on and they've got big wingers who run the ball well and hard, which puts them on the front foot, so they can play their razzle-dazzle and they play a bit of backyard footy too."
But Cummins said the Force had "sussed out areas to exploit'' against the Rebels, including adding some bigger bodies to the back line. ''We're going to have some more go-forward this week. I think there might be a couple of positions moved around a bit."
The Force still had plenty to play for and would not just meekly play out the season. "What's left for us is to show character and turn it around," he said. "Through adversity is usually the best time to see people's character, and we do have the right blokes to have a go at it."
Rebels coach Damien Hill said his team would not take the Force lightly when they meet at nib Stadium in Perth on Sunday.
''They've beaten the Reds and the Waratahs this year and that's two things that we're yet to achieve,'' he said.
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