Protest against axing of Western Force gathers momentum

The protest against the axing of Western Force by the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) has gathered pace with thousands of fans backed by Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest expressed their displeasure on Sunday.

Nearly 4,500 people gathered outside Rugby WA headquarters to extend their support to the franchise with Forrest urging for a complete overhaul of ARU.

Rugby WA has appealed to the Supreme Court in New South Wales on whether they will be granted the right to appeal against the decision of ARU with the verdict expected to be out by Wednesday.

"We will not stand by. If the Super (Rugby) league, the ARU, want to run a process that is not based on merit, that is based on the lucky draw card of where you happen to live or where you happen to support your sport, then we will start our own international league from here," said Forrest.

"This is absolutely not the end of the Western Force, it is not the end of rugby in Western Australia. Win or lose the appeal, we will get stronger."

Apart from Force, Cheetahs and Super Kings were also dropped from the Super Rugby competition which is now a 15 team affair. However, the two South Africa based teams have moved to the Pro 12 competition joining the Northern Hemisphere teams.

Former Rugby WA chairman Geoff Stooke who resigned from his role with ARU as mark of protest against the axing of force has warned the Australian board of a strong legal action, if they do not reverse the decision.

"If it goes our way, we'll move on. If it's doesn't, the legal action will move on," said Stooke.

"The (state) government is seeking compensation for the massive investment in facilities they've made for us.

"They clearly made those investments in the expectation the Force was a permanent part of the WA sporting landscaping."