Sydney – Wallaby skipper David Pocock will join the ACT Brumbies for the 2013 Super Rugby season after leaving Western Force, officials said Sunday.
Brumbies coach Jake White had made clear he wanted to bring the star flanker to Canberra once he finished his contract with the Perth-based Force and the Australian Rugby Union said it would help to finalise the move.
“This decision follows the announcement that Pocock has formally agreed to terms that will see him depart the Western Force at the end of 2012 and join the ACT Brumbies for the 2013 Super Rugby season,” the ARU said in a statement.
Rugby WA said it had done everything it could to retain Pocock, who it said had been a highly-valued member since joining the Force as part of its foundation squad for the 2006 season.
“David's concerns were principally around the club's inability to recruit high-profile players with this challenge highlighted by the recent opportunity presented to Will Genia which ultimately was unsuccessful in bringing him to Western Australia,” it said in a statement.
“This difficulty has since been acknowledged by the Australian Rugby Union in their provision of further concessions for the Emirates Western Force regarding international players for the 2013 season and beyond.” – Sapa-AFP