New Western Force skipper Nathan Sharpe hopes the sacrifices his team-mates have made in joining the expansion club will translate into success on the field.
As was widely expected, Sharpe was named captain of the new Super 14 team during a pre-season camp last weekend, and he has immediately talked up his team-mates following the two days of training and bonding.
"For a lot of the guys, they have sacrificed a lot of things to come over here, like leaving family and friends behind on the eastern seaboard," said Sharpe in The Australian newspaper.
"Even after just a couple of days you can feel that unity because everyone has come together for a common cause."
Sharpe added there is no lack of desire among his team-mates to make club’s inaugural campaign a triumphant one and he believes a successful season is not an unrealistic proposition.
"We’ve all made this huge transition and we want to make it work.
"There is tremendous support and expectation but the most pressure is going to come from ourselves.
"As a team, if we can enjoy ourselves and execute the things we want to do on the field we’ll have a reasonably successful year," he added.
Sharpe joined the Western Force after playing 71 matches with the Queensland Reds.
He will become the first Australian player to lead two teams in the competition when the Western Force line-up against the ACT Brumbies in Perth on February 10.
