Ramage says...

It will be interesting to see if the Force can attract any players of note to the ailing franchise. It is not a good sign that over the past few years they have failed to attract players of note from the Eastern States and have been turned down by various overseas players, only picking up some journeymen from NZ. With the move of Pocock and the retirement of Sharp they have lost two of their leaders and mainstays. Add to this the bleeding of some of their better players to other franchises they have a mighty hurdle in front of them. The appointment of Graham is now in hindsight one of the worst decisions made and I believe the Reds will rue his appointment when he finally takes over the reins after McKenzie becomes the National coach.

The problem here is wider than rugby few codes other than AFL` have succeeded over the years. The state is so far away from the Rugby playing States in the East many are not prepared to come over and leave family ties so far away. It is quicker to fly to NZ than it is to Perth. Still not having a coach having been refused by Chikka, why did you apply man? Relying on Foley who has another year in the bag with the Warataha makes it a farcical situation. Now Pocock has gone there is no hope of attracting Foley. The running of the franchise has seen some woeful moves in these last few years. Seems everywhere John Mitchell goes it seems to turn to custard in the long run. How long will it be before the Force have to pack up and go into liquidation as there is no way they can limp on with such an exodus of players, The sea of Blue are great fans but even the best fans will have problems turning out if there is no hope of winning. This will be the problem facing the ARU added to the problem of a dearth of suitable referees at this level. what a legacy John O'Neill will leave for his successor to sort out. The omens are not good.

Posted 14:56 29th July 2012