Force could get 'home ground' advantage

Australia’s new domestic competition is set to launch on July 3 and there’s a chance Western Force could host some games in Perth.

Western Force coach Tim Sampson hopes his team will be playing in Perth by late July, but he needs the WA government to come to the party.

The full draw of Australia’s new domestic rugby competition was released on Thursday, with the Force to begin their campaign in Round Two against the Waratahs in Sydney on July 11.

It was initially thought the Force would have to play all eight of their regular-season games in the eastern states due to WA’s tough border-closure stance.

But Rugby Australia hopes a deal can be done where the Force can host at least some – and possibly all – of their home games in Perth.

For that to happen, WA would need to relax their mandatory 14-day quarantine period for sporting teams coming into the State.

The Force have been tentatively scheduled to play in Perth in Round Five (Rebels), Round Seven (Waratahs) and Round Eight (Reds).

Their round four match against the Brumbies on July 25 could also be played in Perth, given the Force has been slated as the home team and no venue has yet been allocated.

“It’s out of our hands, but it would be nice to get back-to-back home games. Four in a row would be great here in Perth,” Sampson said.

The Force were booted out of Super Rugby in 2017, but billionaire mining magnate Andrew Forrest saved them from extinction by launching Global Rapid Rugby.

The 2020 GRR season was cancelled after just one round due to the coronavirus pandemic, opening the door for the Force to join their Australian rivals in a new domestic competition.

The Force will start as rank underdogs given their lack of Super Rugby experience.

But Sampson is confident his team will be competitive, and he expects the Force to make some player signings over the coming week.

He said the new competition would also give fledgling Force players the chance to audition for Wallabies selection.

Force captain Ian Prior said the squad was bracing themselves for a tough competition.

“I think like all those Aussie derbies they will be pretty brutal, very competitive,” Prior said.

“It will be good fun to be back out there.”

(Full draw below … )

Super Rugby AU draw

Round One
Friday 3 July – Reds v Waratahs, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane – 19.05 AEST
Saturday 4 July – Brumbies v Rebels, GIO Stadium, Canberra – 19.15 AEST
Western Force Bye

Round Two
Friday 10 July – Rebels v Reds, AAMI Park, Melbourne – 19.05 AEST
Saturday 11 July – Waratahs v Western Force, TBC, Sydney – 19.15 AEST
Brumbies Bye

Round Three
Friday 17 July – Reds v Western Force, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane – 19.05 AEST
Saturday 18 July – Waratahs v Brumbies, TBC, Sydney – 19.15 AEST
Rebels Bye

Round Four
Friday 24 July – Rebels v Waratahs, AAMI Park, Melbourne – 19.05 AEST
Saturday 25 July – Western Force v Brumbies, TBC – 19.15 AEST
Reds Bye

Round Five
Friday 31 July – Western Force v Rebels, HBF Park, Perth* – 19.05 AEST (5.05pm local)
Saturday 1 August – Brumbies v Reds, GIO Stadium, Canberra – 19.15 AEST
Waratahs Bye

Round Six
Friday 7 August – Rebels v Brumbies, AAMI Park, Melbourne – 19.05 AEST
Saturday 8 August – Waratahs v Reds, TBC, Sydney – 19.15 AEST
Western Force Bye

Round Seven
Friday 14 August – Western Force v Waratahs, HBF Park, Perth* – 19.05 AEST (5.05pm local)
Saturday 15 August – Reds v Rebels, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane – 19.15 AEST
Brumbies Bye

Round Eight
Friday 21 August – Western Force v Reds, HBF Park, Perth* – 19.05 AEST (5.05pm local)
Saturday 22 August – Brumbies v Waratahs, GIO Stadium, Canberra – 19.15 AEST
Rebels Bye

Round Nine
Friday 28 August – Brumbies v Western Force, GIO Stadium, Canberra – 19.05 AEST
Saturday 29 August – Waratahs v Rebels, TBC, Sydney – 19.15 AEST
Reds Bye

Round 10
Friday 4 September – Rebels v Western Force, AAMI Park, Melbourne – 19.05 AEST
Saturday 5 September – Reds v Brumbies, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane – 19.15 AEST
Waratahs Bye

Provisional play-off (No.2 on log versus No.3)
Saturday 12 September

Final (No.1 on log versus winner of provisional play-off)
Saturday 19 September

• Western Force home matches subject to WA Govt guidelines