Live Match Thread: Super Rugby AUS Grand Final Western Force vs NSW Waratahs

Force Face Waratahs’ Young Guns in the Perth Decider

Venue: Scotch College Playing Fields, Perth | Date/Time: 3 October, 4:30 PM AEST | Referee: TBC

The Lowdown

Déjà vu, with the roles swapped. Last year the Waratahs rocked up to Perth on a 2-1 regular-season record and left with the trophy after a 33-26 win. This year they are back on the same flight with the same 2-1 record, but the Force have the home ground, a grudge and a 17-12 Round 3 win in their back pocket.

The Force look like the juggernaut here. They made one change to the side that beat NSW. Harry McLaughlin-Phillips takes the 10 jersey fresh from Wallabies camp. He is the bloke who scored a try and slotted the match-winning conversion after the siren on his Force debut against the Reds. Kurtley Beale, a 95-Test Wallaby, slides back to inside centre alongside Boston Fakafanua. Nathan Hastie, the competition’s top try-scorer, runs the show at nine. Misinale Epenisa, the 2026 Rising Star winner, anchors the scrum. Add Wallabies Tom Robertson and Dylan Pietsch, plus James O’Connor on the bench, and this is a side loaded with firepower. The Force are also hunting their first major trophy since the 2019 NRC Grand Final, and that drought will be on their minds.

There is a proper local flavour too. Four members of Cottesloe’s Fortescue Premier Grade-winning side are in the 23, including starting lock Zak Healey.

The Waratahs are the desperate side, and they are wearing it on their sleeves. They made seven changes after the Round 3 loss, and only three of the starting XV are 2026 Super Rugby Pacific players. The rest are seven Academy players and five Shute Shield players. Fullback Sid Harvey is out injured, so Latrell Smiler-Ah Kiong, who scored in both of his first two games, steps in at 15. Otto Serfontein shifts to the left wing and Freedom Vahaakolo to the right.

The youth movement is the story:

• Teddy Wilson (23) returns at nine after three tries in the first two rounds.
• Charlie Bird (19), a Junior World Championships rep for Australia U20s, makes his first start at inside centre. He also captained Randwick Colts to a 55-21 Grand Final win over Gordon this month.
• Isaac Fonua (19) starts at number 8 for the third straight week.
• Nick Chan (25) arrives at outside centre after two seasons with RFC Los Angeles and California Legion.

The one familiar face across the ruck is Max Burey, the 2025 Super Rugby AUS player of the year. He now lines up against his old club for the second time in two weeks.

Head coach Lachlan McCaffrey, in the Waratahs’ own team announcement, reckons a loss like the Round 3 one is better Grand Final prep than a win. He backs a hungry bunch of Academy and Shute Shield kids, and he has Eamon Doyle captaining from lock. The bench brings some grunt in Folau Faingaa, Angus Scott-Young and Luke Reimer, plus former Australia Sevens man Hadley Tonga for backs cover.

Where it gets decided: it is the Force’s settled, Wallabies-laced spine against a rebuilt Waratahs pack and midfield. Half of NSW’s forwards and centres are new to this line-up, so the Force will target the set piece and the gaps between those fresh partnerships. The Tahs’ best route is Burey and Wilson finding room early, and that is a big ask.

Getting there: entry is free. The day is a double-header, with Game 2 of the North vs South Women’s Series at 2:00 PM AEST before the main event. Parking at Scotch is limited because the Perth Royal Show is on at nearby Claremont Showgrounds, so take public transport. If you are watching from home, catch it live on Stan Sport or the rugby.com.au YouTube channel, and check the Grand Final squads confirmed via Rugby.com.au for late changes.

Prediction

Youth and hunger count for plenty in a final, and the Waratahs have beaten the Force in Perth before. But the Force have the continuity, the home crowd and the Wallabies quality, and NSW are asking teenagers and club players to win a title on the road. Expect the Waratahs to hang in for a half before the Force experience tells.

Prediction: Western Force by 12

Match Squads

Western Force

1. Tom Robertson
2. Nic Dolly (c)
3. Misinale Epenisa
4. Will Harris (vc)
5. Zak Healey
6. Kane Koteka
7. Jack Daly
8. Jackson Iose
9. Nathan Hastie
10. Harry McLaughlin-Phillips
11. Wallace Charlie
12. Kurtley Beale
13. Boston Fakafanua
14. Dylan Pietsch
15. Mac Grealy (vc)

Replacements: Albert Alcock, Max Sawers, Brad Kuhn, Regin Pratt, Aden Ekanayake, Ronan Leahy, Nate Gallagher, Tim Sail, Luke Aiken, James O’Connor

NSW Waratahs

1. Tom Lambert
2. Ethan Dobbins
3. Edwin Langi
4. Eamon Doyle (c)
5. Tom Girle
6. Joe Mangelsdorf
7. Marshall Le Maitre
8. Isaac Fonua
9. Teddy Wilson
10. Max Burey
11. Otto Serfontein
12. Charlie Bird
13. Nick Chan
14. Freedom Vahaakolo
15. Latrell Smiler-Ah Kiong

Replacements: Folau Faingaa, Brady Dawson, Will Goddard, Toby Brial, Angus Scott-Young, Luke Reimer, Oniti Finau, Ben Fuhiniu, Hadley Tonga, Joe Dillon

Scroll inside the box for match stats