The Western Force Women are an Australian rugby union team that competes annually in the Super W competition, and are based in Perth, Western Australia. They have competed in every edition of Super W since its official launch in 2018. They played under the name RugbyWA from 2019 to 2020.

Western Force Women
UnionRugby Australia
(Western Australia)
Founded2017; 7 years ago (2017)
LocationPerth, Western Australia
RegionWestern Australia, Australia
Coach(es)Dylan Parsons
Captain(s)Trilleen Pomare
League(s)Super Rugby Women's
20243rd
1st kit
2nd kit
Official website
westernforce.rugby

History

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The team played as the Western Force Women in the inaugural season of the Super W competition, finishing third overall.[1] They played under the name RugbyWA during the 2019 and 2020 seasons after their re-branding. The side returned to their "roots" by wearing the traditional black and gold state colours.[1]

They returned to playing under the Western Force name in 2021 as a newly structured Super W team, in an effort to increases support for the women’s game in Western Australia.[2] With RugbyWA administering the "operational and logistical aspects in a collaborative approach".[2] The Western Force did not complete the 2021 season but opted to pull out of the Super W competition after the first round due to the worsening COVID-19 situation in New South Wales.[3][4]

Current squad

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On 20 February, the squad for the 2024 Super Rugby Women's season was announced.[5]

Western Force Women Super W squad

Props

Hookers

Locks

Loose Forwards

Scrum-halves

Fly-halves

Outside Backs

Fullbacks

  •   Sheree Hume
  •   Aiysha Wigley
(c) Denotes team captain, Bold denotes internationally capped, ST indicated short-term cover and TS indicates a training squad player.

Season standings

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Super W

Year Pos Pld W D L F A +/- BP Pts   Play-offs
2024 3rd 5 3 0 2 124 126 –2 1 13 Lost to Fijian Drua in playoff
2023 5th 5 2 0 3 77 132 –55 0 8 Did not compete
2022 6th 4 0 0 4 57 146 –89 0 0 Did not compete
2021 Withdrew from competition due to COVID-19 pandemic Did not compete
2020 5th 4 0 0 4 41 184 –143 2 2 Did not compete
2019 4th 4 1 0 3 53 86 –33 1 6 Did not compete
2018 3rd 4 2 0 2 154 87 +67 2 10 Did not compete

Coaching Staff

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  • Head Coach: Dylan Parsons
  • Assistant Coach: Chris Heiberg
  • Assistant Coach: Dwayne Grace
  • Female High Performance Pathways Manager: Claudia Bell

References

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  1. ^ a b "Super W: RugbyWA Women unveil new squad and old-school look". www.rugby.com.au. 19 January 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  2. ^ a b Conway, Bryce (1 April 2021). "Western Force launch Super W team". westernforce.rugby. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  3. ^ Chadwick, Justin (27 June 2021). "Force pull out of Super W due to COVID". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  4. ^ Vakil, Karina (26 June 2021). "FORCE WITHDRAW FROM SUPER W 2021". westernforce.rugby. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  5. ^ Somerford, Ben (19 February 2024). "Force's 2024 Super W squad confirmed with seven extended members". westernforce.rugby. Retrieved 6 April 2024.
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