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Force stick with team

Force stand by their men

03/18/2010 07:17:33 AM

Western Force coach John Mitchell will back in his same starting line-up that was thumped by the Reds on Sunday as the WA-club aims to earn its first Super 14 points against the rampant NSW Waratahs on Saturday night.

The Force started disastrously on Sunday at Suncorp Stadium to be 36-3 down at half-time and ultimately lose 50-10 to the Reds to remain pointless from four games this season. However Mitchell is backing in the same players to rebound.

The Force returns to ME Bank Stadium this Saturday night to face the Waratahs in the first of three home matches and the coach expects the pride of the players that struggled on Sunday will shine through.

Given the long injury run the Force has had, it's the first time Mitchell has been able to go with the same starting unit.

He is still without David Pocock, Richard Brown, Cameron Shepherd and Mark Bartholomeusz, with Matt Dunning, Pek Cowan and Luke Jones in doubt for Saturday night's game, but at least his starting line-up will be the same for two weeks straight.

"What we've done is select the same team and put accountability back on the same team. It's important to settle on selection and get some continuity from within the same players," Mitchell said.

"It's good for the players to have that situation and also from the previous performance that you'd think some players would want to respond because they weren't happy with the last performance."

As well as the players looking to improve from last Sunday's games, Mitchell hopes to see the team as a whole take better care of the ball when in possession so that the Force can actually get into some offensive movements.

"They're not playing for their futures, they are good players and it's just a matter of becoming a bit more attentative on the detail," he said.

"We're also looking to evolve our game plan each week, specifically against each opposition and the critical thing for us is that we haven't actually got through a lot of content on attack, and haven't got a lot of reward."

"By sticking with the same playing group and getting settled in terms of understanding and familiarisation, it might give us a better chance of getting through content."

The Waratahs do present a massive obstacle to the Force finding their first points of the season though.

Last week, they thumped the Lions 73-12 in an incredible display, but Mitchell hopes his defence will be better than that of the Lions' and is confident the Force can put the 'Tahs under pressure if his team can keep hold of the ball.

"They are a good side. They were allowed to run havoc last week and had everything their own way. We've got to improve defensively and even though we lost a lot of possession that forced us to tackle for an extra 16 or 20 minutes, you still have to take pride in that area," he said.

"We've been evolving that area also because the game has changed and everyone is suffering a little bit defensively under the new laws. It's very easy for teams to get momentum so possession is really critical. It's amazing how the game can change if you maintain possession and build pressure. I don't think everyone is comfortable defending in the current game."

 
Photograph Copyright : Getty Images

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