The NSW Waratahs have today confirmed their squad for the 2027 Swyftx Super Rugby Pacific competition, with several new players included and young talent promoted from the club’s pathway program.
The squad is headlined by the naming of two Angus’, Bell and Crichton, with the former returning from a successful sabbatical with Ulster in Ireland, while the latter joins the Waratahs for 2027 after switching codes from a glittering rugby league career. Crichton, 30, won two NRL premierships with the Sydney Roosters and four State of Origin series victories, claiming the Wally Lewis medal for player of the series in 2024.
They are joined by Bernard Foley and Nick Phipps, who under incoming Head Coach Michael Cheika won the club’s inaugural and only Super Rugby title in 2014. Foley is the club’s leading all-time points scorer in Super Rugby with 1,089 from 119 appearances, while Phipps has 87 caps for the Waratahs, with an additional 47 for the Melbourne Rebels (134 total). The pair have 148 Wallabies caps between them.
Prop Edwin Langi, back-rowers Isaac Fonua and Marshall Le Maitre, scrum-half Angus Grover and fly-half Joey Fowler are also all named in the senior squad for the first time having come through the club’s Academy. All but Fowler played at this year’s World Rugby Junior Championships in Georgia for Australia U20s, with the Narrabri-born fly-half taking his place in the squad the previous year in Georgia.
Additionally, there are two new signings who will join up with the squad when the players reconvene for pre-season training on Monday 9 November.
Front-rower George Francis joins from Souths in Brisbane’s club competition the Hospital Cup. Francis, 28, was previously at our Academy and played for the Waratahs during Super Rugby AU in 2021. While back Otto Serfontein joins the club on a wider training squad contract. The 21-year-old won the Shute Shield competition with Easts this year and went on to feature in our Swyftx Super Rugby AUS campaign, scoring tries in both of our Round 1 and 2 victories against the Brumbies and the Reds respectively.
Incoming Head Coach Cheika is pleased with the squad for next season and is looking forward to seeing the two Angus’ in action.
“We’re very pleased with the overall shape of the Waratahs squad for 2027,” Cheika said.
“We have a good balance of types of players in many areas and we’re definitely going to add or reinforce in others.
“Angus (Bell) is clearly an international-level player and those types are a huge part of the way Super Rugby teams play. We’re keen to get him playing at his peak and in career-best form for the Waratahs to give him a platform to perform for the rest of 2027.
“I’m hugely looking forward to the other Angus (Crichton) coming over to rugby union. I’ve had the pleasure of coaching him recently at the Roosters and I have no doubt about him making a successful transition back to rugby.
“I was very impressed with the younger crop coming through that played in Super Rugby AUS. Being a former back-rower, I particularly enjoyed Isaac (Fonua) and the way he carried and I’m also very interested in the profile of a player like Marshall (Le Maitre), a forward who has the lightning speed of a back.
“We’re looking forward to our international players featuring at the Nations Championship in November and welcoming them back to the fold in January for pre-season.”
The squad includes 13-capped Wallabies in the shape of Bell, Isaac Kailea, Folau Faingaa, Matt Philip, Miles Amatosero, Luke Reimer, Pete Samu, Jake Gordon, Phipps, Foley, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Max Jorgensen and Harry Potter.
The Waratahs have seven representatives in the Wallabies’ upcoming Spring Tour squad, with Bell, Kailea, Amatosero, Suaalii, Jorgensen and Potter joined by scrum-half Teddy Wilson. The former Australia U20s captain impressed during Super Rugby AUS and was a stand-out player for Easts in their Shute Shield title run.
In terms of other additions, the signings of prop Sefo Kautai and lock Veikoso Poloniati were announced in July, with Kautai, 29, arriving from the Highlanders on a one-year deal, and Poloniati, 30, signing from Moana Pasifika on a two-year deal.
In the front-row, 20-year-old Langi also bolsters our tighthead prop ranks alongside Kautai. The Easts man had a breakout campaign for the Waratahs during Swyftx Super Rugby AUS, with his form recently recognised with a call-up to the Australia A squad out in the US. Hooker Ethan Dobbins is also currently with Australia A, with Dan Botha (Northland) and Jack Barrett (Southland) competing in this year’s NPC competition in New Zealand. Bell, Kailea and Ranawai round out the front-row.
Eamon Doyle’s rapid rise post-season sees him reclaim his place in the squad. Doyle, 21, captained the Waratahs during Super Rugby AUS and made his Australian senior representative debut at the weekend when he came on as a substitute for Australia A in the 61-12 win over US Eagles.
Luke Reimer is the headline signing in the back-row, alongside Academy graduates Fonua and Le Maitre. Fonua, 19, can play any position across the back-row while Le Maitre, 20, is an openside specialist and has previously captained our U16s’ and U19s’ sides. Reimer, 26, returns to his hometown club after six seasons with the Brumbies.
In the scrum-half position, there is a fantastic blend of youth and experience. Phipps and Wilson are joined by Jake Gordon and Grover. Gordon, 33, is the club’s ninth-most capped player in Super Rugby, one ahead of Foley. Grover, 19, is a Lindfield and Gordon junior who captained the Australian U18s side that defeated New Zealand 2-0 in the two-match series last year.
Max Burey and Fowler will stand alongside Foley in the fly-half ranks. Burey, 27, impressed during Super Rugby AUS after joining his hometown club from the Western Force.
Henry O’Donnell returns to the squad having missed the 2026 season due to an 18-month period of ineligibility. The 23-year-old will report for the beginning of pre-season training on Monday 9 November.
The inaugural Super Rugby Pacific Rookie of the Year Sid Harvey is also included alongside Jorgensen, who took out the prestigious Matt Burke Cup and Best Back at this season’s Waratahs Awards and Suaalii, who has featured in all but one of the Wallabies’ Test matches in 2026.
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Waratahs 2027 Swyftx Super Rugby Pacific squad
Forwards:
- Miles Amatosero
- Jack Barrett
- Angus Bell
- Dan Botha
- Ethan Dobbins
- Eamon Doyle
- Folau Faingaa
- Isaac Fonua
- George Francis
- Clem Halaholo
- Isaac Kailea
- Sefo Kautai
- Edwin Langi
- Marshall Le Maitre
- Matt Philip
- Veikoso Poloniati
- Apolosi Ranawai
- Luke Reimer
- Pete Samu
- Angus Scott-Young
Backs:
- Max Burey
- Angus Crichton
- Bernard Foley
- Joey Fowler
- Jake Gordon
- Angus Grover
- Sid Harvey
- James Hendren
- Max Jorgensen
- Henry O’Donnell
- Nick Phipps
- George Poolman
- Harry Potter
- Otto Serfontein
- Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii
- Teddy Wilson
