Tue 9 Feb 2010
The Waratahs officially launched their 2010 Super 14 campaign yesterday at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Standing just metres from the turf on which New South Wales played their first ever match against Queensland in 1882, the 31-man Super 14 squad was presented in their new home strip.
NSW Rugby chief executive officer Jim L’Estrange said fans can expect a big season from the Tahs both on and off the field.
“The coaching team has recruited extremely well in the off-season with a focus on attack, and the performances in the trials have everyone excited about the final year of Super 14,” said Mr L’Estrange. “The team has been doing all the right things in preparation, and we’ve also been working hard off the field to create high value ticket and membership packages, and we have even been able to introduce free entry for junior registered players in 2010.
“All that’s ahead of us now is to hit the field on Saturday and get the season underway.”
Head coach Chris Hickey said the team was looking forward to putting the pre-season behind them and getting on with the Super 14 campaign.
“At the end of May you spend the next few months working hard to make sure you’ve got everything in place for the season ahead, and then you follow that up with three months of pre-season training and trials,” said Hickey. “That’s all behind us now; we’re at the start line and we’ve got almost the entire squad fit for selection later this week.
“We’ve really improved our depth this season which is always important in a competition like the Super 14 where injuries are inevitable.”
Hickey said that three trials on the road had prepared the team for a tough start to 2010.
“We’ve spent the last few weeks playing matches in Lismore, Orange and Canberra and that’s really helped everyone come together as a group, especially considering we have a number of new players in the squad,” said Hickey. “That will certainly help with our start to the season when we play the Reds in Brisbane, the Stormers in Cape Town and the Bulls in Pretoria.”
After their three-week road trip to start the year, the Waratahs play their first home game in round four against the Sharks (SFS), and spend a period of five weeks on Australian soil with matches against the Lions (SFS), Force (Perth), Blues (SFS) and Cheetahs (SFS).
They then play the Crusaders in Christchurch before enjoying a week off prior to the blockbuster against the Brumbies at ANZ Stadium in round 11. The Tahs then spend two weeks in New Zealand playing the Highlanders (Invercargill) and Chiefs (Hamilton) before returning to Sydney for the final match of the regular season against the Hurricanes.