'Injured' Force get Giteau back
Thu, 01 May 2008 09:40
Western Force coach John Mitchell made a number of injury-enforced changes to his team for their Super 14 Week 12 clash with the Chiefs at Subiaco Oval on Saturday as the injury crisis in the camp deepened.
However, Mitchell will welcome back star playmaker Matt Giteau to spearhead the attack in Cameron Shepherd's 50th Super Rugby match.
After losing Tamaiti Horua (knee, season), Tom Hockings (shoulder) and Haig Sare (ankle) to injury in the team's last outing a fortnight ago, Mitchell was again forced to re-shuffle his line-up on Thursday when projected starters Scott Staniforth (knee) and Sam Wykes (hamstring) were both forced to withdraw from Saturday's clash.
In a completely new-look matchday 22 - from the one which lost 12-29 to the Reds in Brisbane - the third-year Western Force coach has taken a view to the future with his side now only a distant chance of finals qualification.
He has handed 17-year-old rookie James O'Connor he No.12 jersey, while two local juniors have been added to the replacement bench.
O'Connor, who debuted off the bench with an eye-catching 20-minute cameo against the Reds, will share the playmaking duties with Giteau in his run-on debut.
In other changes to the starting side, James Stannard earns another shot at scrumhalf and Matt Hodgson has won the No.8 spot.
Having twice started at openside flank this season, Hodgson assumes the No.8 role for the first time in his career.
Elsewhere in the pack, veteran lock David Pusey rejoins captain Nathan Sharpe at lock and Nick Cummins returns to the right wing.
Mitchell has named an almost entirely new bench - featuring two locally-produced players in Kieran Longbottom and Dane Haylett-Petty, who are both in line to register their first Super 14 cap.
The only born and bred West Australian in the Western Force squad, Longbottom was a big contributor for the Perth Spirit in last year's Australian Rugby Championship (ARC) and has represented Western Australia at Under-15, Under-16 and schoolboy level.
Haylett-Petty, an 18-year-old Hale School product, makes his second appearance in the match 22 this season.
Utility back Scott Daruda returns from an ankle injury to wear the No.21 jersey, while Sitaleki Timani returns to the bench for the first time since Week One.
Western Force: 15 Cameron Shepherd, 14 Nick Cummins, 13 Ryan Cross, 12 James O'Connor, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Matt Giteau (vice-captain), 9 James Stannard, 8 Matt Hodgson, 7 David Pocock, 6 Scott Fava, 5 Nathan Sharpe (captain), 4 David Pusey, 3 Troy Takiari, 2 Tai McIsaac, 1 Pek Cowan.
Replacements: 16 Luke Holmes, 17 Kieran Longbottom, 18 Sitaleki Timani, 19 Richard Brown, 20 Chris O'Young, 21 Scott Daruda, 22 Dane Haylett-Petty.
Date: Saturday, May 3
Venue: Subiaco Oval, Perth
Kick-off:
17.40 (09.40 GMT)
Referee: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
Touch judges: Mark Lawrence (South Africa), D Mitchelmore (Australia)
TMO: George Ayoub (Australia)
Assessor: Andrew Cole (Australia), Stuart Beissel (New Zealand)
