Western Force silence last year's pain as they host Waratahs in Super Rugby AUS Grand Final rematch

Western Force will host the NSW Waratahs in the Super Rugby AUS Grand Final at Scotch College Playing Fields in Perth on Saturday, exactly one year after losing 26-33 to the same opponents in the first-ever edition of the decider at Pittwater Park.

Head coach Damian Steele has deliberately kept that defeat out of the conversation. “No mention of last year. The group is totally different… there would be some players who are the same but there’s not a heap,” he said. “Our focus has just been identifying the areas where we were accurate on the weekend and wanting to capitalise on that, and then tidy up some other areas.”

The Force arrived at this Grand Final in commanding form, opening their campaign with a nail-biting one-point win over the Queensland Reds in Brisbane before dismantling the ACT Brumbies 40-12, with Jack Daly and Nathan Hastie both crossing twice. A 17-12 victory over the Waratahs in round three kept their unbeaten record intact and secured home-final advantage.

The Waratahs, meanwhile, had already locked in a top-two ladder position before that round-three result, guaranteeing their place in the decider. Steele acknowledged they will arrive motivated. “They’ll be hurting. They rightfully wanted to host… they have made some changes. Sid Harvey is obviously a very good footballer, he’s a real triple-threat at the back there, so he’ll be a loss.”

One-Test England international Nic Dolly captains the Force and packs down in the front row alongside Wallaby prop Tom Robertson. The experienced 95-Test utility Kurtley Beale starts at inside centre, with Dylan Pietsch on the wing and James O’Connor named among the replacements. In the halves, uncapped Wallabies squad member Harry McLaughlin-Phillips — recently included in Australia’s 34-man Bledisloe Cup group — wears the number 10 jersey alongside in-form scrum-half Hastie.

Max Burey, who was named Player of the Tournament after leading the Force to last year’s final, has since moved east to join the Waratahs, adding an extra layer of narrative to the rematch.

Steele framed the occasion as more than a trophy chase. “For the community, we want that success for the people. The organisation itself… everyone craves winning,” he said. “Will the campaign be deemed a success either way? Potentially in some areas. But ultimately this is a group of people that have been together for 10 weeks and we want to cap that off with a really positive experience.”