Force recruit makes playoff 'promise' ahead of new season

Western Force recruit Chase Tiatia has vowed to supporters that the team will “definitely” qualify for the playoffs in Super Rugby Pacific this season.

The Force fell agonisingly short of a playoff berth last season, having been pipped in the race for eighth place by the Highlanders.

Instead, the Western Australian side finished the regular season in ninth place – having missed out on the next stage by points difference.

But there’s hope.

While finals football has eluded the Force, who have failed to qualify for the playoffs when New Zealand teams are involved, this might finally be their year.

Elusive outside back Tiatia has encouraged Force fans to dream big ahead of the new campaign, as the team look to end their playoff drought in 2023.

“The ultimate goal is always to win a championship,” Tiatia told RugbyPass.

“It just helps (if I) share my knowledge as an old fella, we get all the old fellas to bring the young boys up to speed and let them express themselves.

“We’ll definitely be in the playoffs this year.

“From the management, coaching staff, physios, doctors, all the way through to our academy boys coming through, they’ve put a good template in place and the boys are working really hard to achieve the goals that they want to achieve this year.

“That’s a promise for the people in Perth.”

Tiatia played Super Rugby for the Chiefs and Hurricanes in New Zealand, and also starred for Wellington, Bay of Plenty and Hawke’s Bay in the NPC.

But after a couple of seasons back in Hamilton, Tiatia said the “writing was on the wall” for him at the Chiefs.

With plenty of talented players coming through the ranks, and with Damian McKenzie returning from a stint in Japan, Tiatia knew he’d have to look elsewhere.

But he didn’t want to play for any other New Zealand sides.

Force assistant coach Mark Ozich approached Tiatia about an opportunity in Western Australia; a chance he was clearly excited to make the most of.

“I’m pretty used to it, I actually quite enjoy it. I get quite bored if I’m staying in the same place. I like constant change, it helps me grow,” he added.

“I’ve moved around NPC teams, I’ve moved around Super teams, and I feel like my game is just getting better and better.

“There’s different ways of playing rugby and it’s awesome to learn different ways to see the game.”

Tiatia is one of a number of new recruits at the Force this season, including Wallaby Folau Fainga’a and former Reds midfielder Hamish Stewart.

The Force have a destructive forward pack at their disposal this season, and also have one of the most exciting backlines in Australia.

“There’s quite a lot of new guys in this Force team, not from Perth. We’ve all had to stick with each other, we don’t really have too much else outside of the team.

“We’re still trying to find our feet around the city so we’ve developed pretty deep connections pretty fast which I think will help when we get on the rugby field and starting playing for each other.

“Everyone trains during the week, every Super Rugby team trains throughout the week, so it’s that stuff you do outside of training that’s going to help you get better.

“You actually want to play for people that you love and I’m really starting to love these boys. It’s like nine hours from home back to NZ… we are a family over here.”

The opening round of Super Rugby Pacific is just over one week away, with the champion Crusaders set to kick things off against the Chiefs in Hamilton.

As for the Force, they’ll begin their season against the Melbourne Rebels on February 25.