Former Western Force assistant Ben Darwin believes the Perth side will be treating Saturday's Super 14 blockbuster against the NSW Waratahs as the match which fulfils their quest to become Australia's No.1 side.

Darwin, the former Wallaby prop who left the Force in acrimonious circumstances at the end of the franchise's inaugural season in 2006, said the clash between Australia's two current Super powers would be taking on historical significance for the Force.

"Their goal this year as far as I know is to make top four and to be the number one side in Australian rugby by the end of this year," Darwin said.

"I think if they get this done (beat NSW) they'll probably be regarded as that.

"So this will be, as far as they're concerned, the definitive game in terms of their history because it actually then says, okay, we are now the big dogs so to speak and I think they want to be the big dogs."

Darwin, who was tragically forced to retire with a neck injury during the 2003 World Cup, said the Force's biggest hurdle in such a pressure-charged preparation would be the new freedom the Waratahs have found since ending the controversy surrounding coach Ewen McKenzie.

"You certainly can (put too much pressure on yourself) but they want it, someone's got to take it," he told AAP.

"It's one thing to say you're the best in Australia, it's another thing to say you can beat the Crusaders and I think that performance they put down on the Crusaders earlier in the year (a 29-24 loss in round four) probably gave them a huge amount of confidence.

"The biggest problem for the Force at the moment is the Tahs are playing with a huge amount of freedom because they've just made that decision coach-wise."

The Force have not beaten NSW in two attempts, although they did edge closer with a 16-16 draw in their second meeting in Sydney last year.

Darwin said the talk inside the underrated Force tight five would "absolutely" be about proving a point to their big name opponents and selectors at Subiaco Oval.

"Any chip you can get on your shoulder you've got to use," he said.

And he said the West Australians deserved more faces in the Wallabies pack.

"They've been achieving parity this year which is great," said Darwin, whose hard luck sporting career continued at the weekend when he finished his first ironman triathlon on a drip with hypothermia.

"In terms of the breakdown they've been outstanding and they work incredibly hard.

"I think you've got to look at it position by position ... It all depends on individual skill.

"They certainly deserve it. If you finish as high as they do you can't not have that many faces in the squad, surely."

Darwin singled out 23-year-old Force No.8 Richard Brown for special praise.

"Richard Brown's been putting a lot of heat on this year, particularly under the ELVs because he's so combative," he said.

"He's physically almost a Richie McCaw style player now."

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