Beale and O'Connor headline Western Force's expanded Super Rugby Pacific squad

Western Force have unveiled their squad for the 2027 Super Rugby Pacific season, with veteran Wallaby Kurtley Beale and former ACT Brumbies scrum-half Harrison Goddard committing to season-long train-and-trial deals alongside a string of notable signings.

Beale, who has earned 95 Test caps for Australia, has spent the past two-and-a-half years at the Perth-based club and re-committed ahead of the new campaign. Goddard returns to Australian rugby after a spell in Japan.

The headline additions among the contracted players are James O’Connor, James Ramm and Zac Lomax. O’Connor rejoins the club where his professional career began, while Ramm returns to Australia following a stint in English Premiership rugby. Lomax, who made his Force debut last season, has already earned recognition at representative level, earning selection in the Australia A squad currently on tour in the United States.

Force teammates Tom Robertson, Will Harris, Nathan Hastie and Mac Grealy started for Australia A in a victory in Nashville, underlining the club’s growing influence on the national setup.

Among the off-season recruits, Harry McLaughlin-Phillips arrives from the Queensland Reds having already made his mark on the Force’s recent history — he starred in the Grand Final win over the NSW Waratahs that delivered the club its first Super Rugby AUS title. Chiefs prop Reuben O’Neill has also joined the squad, along with Australia Sevens representatives Wallace Charlie and Aden Ekanayake, both of whom impressed during the Super Rugby AUS campaign.

Head coach Simon Cron pointed to the continuity within the group as a key foundation for the season ahead. “We’re happy to have retained most of the core player group from last season, adding in some targeted players that will complement the group,” he said. “We’ve seen a lot of recent growth within our squad, highlighted by our Wallabies and Australia A representatives and recent success in Super AUS, and we’ll keep driving the players to progress further to move us towards our goals.”

Cron also emphasised the importance of stable leadership within the squad. “The continuity among our leaders is important, helping to further instil and grow our standards and culture internally which will drive us forward.”

The full train-and-trial group includes Beale, Goddard, Albert Alcock, Tama Anderson, Gus Farnan, Kenny Harris, Zak Healey, Bradley Kuhn, Ronan Leahy and Max Sawers.