Western Force players will once again don their Club colours in the 2025 Fortescue Premier Grade season.
Ahead of the Super Rugby season kick off next month, Western Force and Fortescue Academy players met with RugbyWA Clubs to receive their club allocations and register for the 2025 season.
Western Force will see 38 players represented in the Fortescue Premier Grade, with an additional 31 players from the Fortescue Academy joining them.
The annual player allocation within the Premier Grade highlights the collaborative approach between the governing body and the Force, as both organisations work to maintain their strong community connection and encourage participation at the grassroots level.
CEO of RugbyWA, Simon Taylor, said: “It’s brilliant to once again see so many of the Western Force players heading out into the Western Australian rugby community for our 2025 Fortescue Premier Grade season.
“Having these players active in our community plays an important role in the growth and development of the game, in addition to allowing for younger players to see clear pathways, promoting excellence and success within our local competitions.
“The Western Force Player Allocation is a great opportunity to demonstrate the Western Force accessibility to our communities, and we look forward to their contributions to the Fortescue Premier Grade competition and their clubs.”
Western Force players will be spread throughout the Perth metropolitan Premier Grade clubs, with captain Jeremy Williams heading to Joondalup Brothers, alongside the club’s junior program alums, Marley and Oakley Pearce.
Homegrown Wallaby, Carlo Tizzano will once again return to his own junior club, UWA, for 2025, alongside fellow 2024 Wallabies debutant, Hamish Stewart. UWA player allocations will also include Tom Horton, Doug Philipson and Ronan Leahy, who appeared for the club in 2024.
Fortescue Academy players HD Stemmet and Justin Landman will return to Associates, following their contributions to the side’s Premiership win of the Fortescue Premier Grade in 2024. They’ll be joined by Wallaby and new Force signing, Darcy Swain, as well as Bayley Kuenzle, who returns to the club.
RugbyWA Academy graduates, Zane Wesley and Brodie Mainwaring, who have joined the Western Force Academy for 2025, will be returning to their junior club of Wanneroo, with fellow alum Peni Naqau heading to his junior club, Southern Lions.
Force CEO Niamh O’Connor said: “As WA’s elite rugby club, we’re conscious of the role we play with community and grassroots rugby in this state, growing the game, assisting development and raising the quality to grow WA players with a long-term lens.
“These player allocations are a really important part of that, to boost participation but also help create the next Western Australian Wallaby like Carlo Tizzano and next wave of WA professional rugby players.
“We want our Super Rugby and Academy players connecting wherever possible in 2025 with their allocated clubs, whether it’s training, playing or coaching, we want to build genuine connections.”
Western Force’s Super Rugby season will commence on February 15 at HBF Park.
RugbyWA’s Fortescue Premier Grade season will kick off later in 2025.
