Back to reality now, this turned up in my twitter feed:
https://www.playersvoice.com.au/pek-...a-club-ruined/
"Stress, tears & a club ruined
Pek Cowan - Contributor"
"
This is a story about unemployment. It’s about kids crying at having to move states and leave their friends behind, and mothers delivering babies into a world of uncertainty.
It’s about stress and anger and disrespect and mortgage payments. It might be about depression, but I wouldn’t know for sure, because I’m not trained to diagnose it, and there are no professionals around to help.
It’s the story of the Western Force’s destruction and it hasn’t been told outside of the playing group until now.
THE FLAME IS NOW A CANDLE
Matt Hodgson and I are the only two guys who have been with the Force since the start. That’s 12 seasons now. There have been so many people who contributed to the club during that time – the fans, the volunteers and tons of others. We’re not even going to be able to say goodbye to them.
I’m not sure what I’m going to do. I’m only 31 and could play for a couple of years. And I’m contracted until next year anyway. The hardest thing for me to deal with is the thought of moving states to represent a union that didn’t want the club I bled for.
My passion for rugby has always burned brightly. It is barely a candle now, just faintly flickering, and it could extinguish entirely unless I find a way to reconcile all the things that have happened over the past month.
Part of me just wants to stay in Perth and make them pay me for next year. A big, ‘Stuff you’ for all the mistakes the ARU has made along the way that led to our demise. Part of me thinks about going overseas. And part of me is pretty excited about this new comp Twiggy Forrest is backing that could potentially be up and running next year.
It still feels like a bad dream. Sometimes you think you’ll wake up from it and go, ‘That was terrible, but everything’s OK’. But it’s not. Every day since the Force’s execution was confirmed has been worse than the one before.
Guys are looking for contracts and trying to organise their lives. That’s not easy. Super Rugby teams are pretty much full for next season and there is an argument going on between the ARU and franchises over who is liable to pay out existing contracts for Force players. Overseas markets are closed, too.
We’ve pretty much been left high and dry at the worst time of the year."
There is a lot more to read there, so click the link above and have a read.