The Western Force have moved quickly to re-sign coach Simon Cron, with the Kiwi penning a two-year extension.
It will keep Cron at the club until the end of 2026 after taking charge at the start of last year.
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Cron's maiden year saw the club narrowly miss the finals with a 5-9 record as he looked to implement his own coaching style on the club.
Under Cron, the Force have recruited the likes of Wallabies duo Nic White and Ben Donaldson along with English centre Sam Spink.
The 48-year-old had little hesitation signing an extension with the club as they push for a finals berth.
“If you look at the players who take to the field every week, they excite us as coaches,” Cron said in a statement. “We’re excited about them.
“We love the personalities, we love their drive to succeed, we love seeing them every day on field, pushing each other for success.
“We believe we’ve got the core of something special growing here. That’s what’s excited me about staying here.”
New CEO Niamh O’Connor was impressed with what Cron has brought to the club, with the former Shute Shield winning coach looking to deliver similar success.
“Since his arrival in Perth 18 months ago, Simon and his coaching team have worked hard to put the foundation pieces in place for long-term success for the Force,” O’Connor said.
“That doesn’t happen overnight but the trajectory of the team under Simon is exciting and while we didn’t make the finals last year, we saw glimpses of the project building and evolving. That’s only been enhanced during the off-season by our recruitment and player buy-in.
“You can feel internally that there’s an elite high performance environment and positive success-focused culture growing within the playing squad which is exactly part of the Club’s vision to be world class.
“The Force board have every confidence in Simon to take us to that next level, thus we’re thrilled to have him sign a contract extension, keeping him in Perth until at least 2026.”
