 | |||
| Union | Rugby Australia | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2007 | ||
| Disbanded | 2018 (pre-season) | ||
| Location | Perth, Western Australia | ||
| Ground(s) | UWA Rugby Park | ||
| League(s) | NRC,ARC | ||
| 2016 | Champions | ||
| |||
ThePerth Spirit is a formerrugby union team based inPerth, Western Australia, that played in theNational Rugby Championship (NRC) from 2014 to 2017, winning the competition in 2016. The team was formed in 2007 to compete in theAustralian Rugby Championship (ARC).
The Perth Spirit team was organised and managed byRugbyWA. The high performance programs utilised by theWestern Force inSuper Rugby were extended to players joining the Spirit from the Force, the Perth Premier Grade competition and the Future Force rugby academy.
The identity of the Perth Spirit remained the same throughout team's participation in the ARC and NRC. The team disbanded when the ARC was discontinued after the first season in 2007 but, after an absence of six years, the national competition was relaunched in 2014 as the NRC,[1] and the Perth Spirit was revived. In 2017, however, the Western Force was excluded from the Super Rugby competition. The reformed RugbyWA then decided to enter the Western Force in the National Rugby Championship, replacing the Perth Spirit for the start of the 2018 season.[2]
In 2006, after setting up a consultative process culminating in a working session of some 70 delegates from around the country, theAustralian Rugby Union announced that a new, eight-team national competition would commence in 2007 to compete for theAustralian Rugby Championship (ARC).[3]
With the announcement of a new national rugby union competition, it was known that one of the foundation clubs would be located in Perth - with three teams inNew South Wales, two inQueensland and one each inCanberra andMelbourne making up the inaugural eight.
The Perth team's name - Spirit, along with colours and logo were unveiled in March 2007. Some 20 names were considered for the ARC team, with Spirit being the option finally preferred because it was seen to be identifiable as Western Australian and a good fit with the Force name used by the Super Rugby team.[4] RugbyWA Chief Executive, Peter O’Meara, said:
Just as Force taps into the natural elements that have shaped WA, the word Spirit is strong, powerful and dynamic, and reflects the independent, open-minded and entrepreneurial way West Aussies approach things.
— Peter O’Meara, Perth Spirit launch, 21 March 2007.[4]
At the launch of the new team, it was revealed that John Mulvihill would be the head coach of the Spirit for the inaugural season. Mulvihill was also theSuper 14Western Force attack coach. The team's jersey for the ARC was a traditional design with black and gold hoops.
The ARC competition started in August, with the Spirit playing their first home game on the second weekend of August. The Spirit's home games were played atMembers Equity Stadium. At the time, the Western Force did not play at Members Equity but at the larger capacity venue ofSubiaco Oval. However, Members Equity Stadium was better suited to rugby due to its rectangular configuration. The stadium had a capacity of around 17,000 in 2007.[5] It has since been expanded to hold over 20,000 and, due to another sponsorship deal, is now known as nib Stadium.
The players in the ARC squad adopted an unconventional name of the "Perth Pigs". The team was captained by half backMatt Henjak after he overcame a back injury. Tai McIsaac was the vice-captain.[6] Perth finished third on the league table after the regular season, and played theCentral Coast Rays in a semi-final atGosford. The Rays won the match 20–8.
The Australian Rugby Championship was terminated at the end of 2007 after only one season of competition, with the Australian Rugby Union citing higher costs than budgeted and further projected financial losses.[7] The Perth Spirit team was disbanded with the end of the ARC competition.
In December 2013, theARU announced that the national competition was to be relaunched, with the National Rugby Championship (NRC) commencing in 2014.[8] Expressions of interest were open to any interested parties, with the accepted bids finalised in early 2014.[9]
In 2014, it was announced that the Perth Spirit team would be revived to take part in theNational Rugby Championship, and that the original logo and black and gold jersey colours would be retained.[10] For the 2014 NRC season, the Spirit secured Western Australian local business the Property Club as the main jersey sponsor on a three-year deal, and non-bank currency specialist AFEX (Associated Foreign Exchange) as shorts sponsor on a two-year deal.[11][12]
Western Force assistant coachesDavid Wessels andKevin Foote were named as joint head coaches of the Perth Spirit for the 2014 season. Dwayne Nestor and Elwee Prinsloo were named as assistant coaches.[13] For the Spirit's first match,Rory Walton was named as captain from an on-field leadership group which also includedKyle Godwin,Luke Morahan,Ian Prior,Heath Tessmann, andSam Wykes.[14][15]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion with: details of 2016–2018. You can help byadding to it.(July 2018) |
Dwayne Nestor was appointed head coach in 20I6.[16]
2016 NRC Final
Perth Spirit beat the NSW Country Eagles to win the 2016 NRC Final 20–16 at Scully Park.
The Perth Spirit's main colours were black and gold, the traditional colours ofWestern Australia. The NRC jerseys also had a splash of blue under the collar to symbolise the pathway to theWestern Force team.[11] The team's logo featured a stylisedblack swan, similar to that of the Western Force although on a gold background instead of the Force's blue. The black swan is the state emblem and state bird of Western Australia.
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| Spirit's main and alternate kits 2014–15 | |
Most of the Perth Spirit's home matches were played at theUWA Rugby Club in Mount Claremont. In their earlier seasons matches were also played at other locations across Greater Perth, and a match was also hosted in Adelaide to promote the growth of rugby in South Australia.[17] Venues used in previous seasons include:
| City | Venue | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Joondalup | HBF Arena | 16,000 |
| Port Kennedy | Rockingham RUC | 2,000 |
| Adelaide, S.A. | Thebarton Oval | 15,000 |
National Rugby Championship
| Year | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | +/- | BP | Pts | Play-offs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 4th | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 269 | 237 | +32 | 4 | 20 | Semi-final loss toCanberra Vikings by 40–35 |
| 2016 | 3rd | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 250 | 210 | +40 | 2 | 22 | Grand final win overNSW Country by 20–16 |
| 2015 | 6th | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 276 | 271 | +5 | 4 | 16 | Did not compete |
| 2014 | 4th | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 301 | 259 | +42 | 5 | 17 | Grand final loss toBrisbane City by 37–26 |
Australian Rugby Championship
| Year | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | +/- | BP | Pts | Play-offs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 3rd | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 210 | 138 | 72 | 1 | 25 | Semi-final loss toCentral Coast Rays by 27–19 |
The squad for the2017 National Rugby Championship season:[20]
Props
Hookers
Locks
| Loose forwards Scrum-halves
Fly-halves | Centres
Wingers
Fullbacks
|
(c) Denotes team captain,Bold player internationally capped at the time,1 denotes allocated national player additional to the squad.
The following players were named in the Perth Spirit's extended squad for the2016 National Rugby Championship:[21]
Props
Hookers Locks
| Loose forwards
Scrum-halves
Fly-halves
| Centres
Wingers
Fullbacks
|
(c) Denotes team captain,Bold player internationally capped at the time,1 denotes allocated national player additional to the squad.
The following players were named in the Perth Spirit's extended squad for the2015 National Rugby Championship:[22]
Props
Hookers
Locks
| Loose forwards
Scrum-halves
Fly-halves | Centres
Wingers
Fullbacks
|
(c) Denotes team captain,Bold denotes player internationally capped at the time,1 denotes allocated national player additional to the squad.
The following players were named in the Perth Spirit's extended squad for the2014 National Rugby Championship:[23][24][25]
Props Hookers
Locks
| Loose forwards
Scrum-halves
Fly-halves
| Centres
Wingers
Fullbacks |
(c) Team captain;Bold denotes player internationally capped at the time,1 denotes allocated national player additional to the squad.
Props Hookers Locks | Back row
Halfbacks Flyhalves | Centres
Wings Fullbacks |
(c) Denotes team captain,Bold denotes player internationally capped at the time,1 denotes allocated national player additional to the squad.
