The Western Force have come through a tough 2010 campaign disappointed with their ladder position but with a solidarity and determination amongst the squad which will set them on a path for success in seasons to come.
Captain Nathan Sharpe, who enjoyed a stand-out season at lock, said despite a glut of injuries to key players curtailing the Force in the opening half of the year there was a silver lining as plenty of young players were blooded at Super 14 level.
"We were on the back foot but we played the cards we were dealt and made the most of what we could do," said Sharpe as he reflected on the season.
"You could probably cut it (the season) in half almost.
"The pleasing thing out of that for us is in the back half of the season we actually got quite a lot of depth.
"When we got our full compliment back we started putting pressure on teams.
"It is a very good learning point for us but sometimes when you learn lessons they hurt and we are not happy about where we finished on the ladder," said Sharpe.
Coach John Mitchell also pointing to the development of young players as the positive to come from a season that promised so much yet suffered significant hurdles as injuries to Wallabies David Pocock, Richard Brown and Cameron Shepherd in the opening round compounded a season ending hamstring tear to marquee flyhalf Andre Pretorius a week before kick-off.
"If you look outside the disappointment of where we finished in the tournament, the five boys that have shown significant improvement and clearly have the ability to succeed in Super 14, and possibly test rugby, are the likes of Mitch Inman, Ben McCalman, Justin Turner, Ben Whittaker and Nathan Charles," Mitchell said.
"I think those five players in particular have really stood out through opportunity that was presented through injury.
"We are always going to get injuries, that is a fact, but I guess we didn’t expect seven lump sum injuries at the start of the season. The character that the group showed and what Nathan (Sharpe) and Matt Hodgson in particular showed was outstanding.
"They thrived in that situation and displayed the character that was absolutely necessary for us to get through that period."
While the Force ended the season on the wrong side of the ledger in terms of wins and losses, four victories in the last seven games, including memorable successes against the finals bound Crusaders and Stormers, showed the potential of this group.
The win against the Crusaders at ME Bank Stadium was a significant milestone for the Emirates Western Force who can now lay claim to every scalp in Super Rugby since entering the competition just five years ago.
"We clearly believe that we can contest finals and become the best team in this competition," Mitchell said of the club’s ambitions.
"I think we showed examples in the back end of this season, in going 4 and 7, that if we had stayed healthy for the majority of the season we could have achieved that goal (of finals)."
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