Beale leads Aussie teenage rampage
Tue, 13 May 2008 15:02
Kurtley Beale is a name that has been bandied about in Super 14 and international rugby for a while, without attracting too much serious attention - until now.
The young pivot has been paid only fleeting respect, despite his current standing as one of the realistic favourites for the Australian No.10 jersey.
Beale's name has been synonymous with talent, but the general consensus has been that he was thrust into the cauldron at too young an age - he was only 17 when he made his 2007 debut for the Waratahs in Super 14 rugby.
But Beale, who recently turned 19, showed what he was made of against the Stormers, by kicking a difficult conversion in the pouring rain and howling wind in front of 45,000 hostile Stormers fans to level the scores.
The young playmaker has gone from strength to strength this season, and has improved steadily in a position of ultimate responsibility. His general play has improved dramatically, and he has become a very important part of the 'Tahs backline.
His kicking game against the Stormers was excellent in the atrocious weather conditions, and he regularly exploited space in between the Stormers back three with clever, well-executed kicks that placed the home side under pressure.
Beale is one of a growing number of Australian teenagers to survive in the sink-or-swim environment of the Super 14 this year.
The Waratahs have also handed starts to 18-year-old centre Rob Horne and 19-year-old utility back Alfi Mafi in 2008.
Horne acquitted himself very well against the Stormers in adverse conditions and against a Springbok opposition pairing of Jean de Villiers and Gcobani Bobo, and looks like a great prospect.
But it is not only the Waratahs that have been blooding their youngsters in the toughest provincial rugby arena.
The Brumbies' backline has been well documented this year, and the loss of George Gregan and Stephen Larkham, and the injuries to players like Adam Ashley-Cooper and Stirling Mortlock, has meant that coach Laurie Fisher has had no choice but to play the young talent at his disposal.
This has brought 20-year-old Christian Lealiifano strongly into the picture, and he has visibly grown and adapted his game to the rigours of the Super 14.
The Brumbies have also given game time to another future star in Matt Toomua, 18, as well as 20-year-old Sanualio Afeaki.
And the Australian rugby conveyor belt does not end there.
The Reds started the season with three teenagers in their squad - Ben Daley, Rob Simmons and Quade Cooper.
People can be forgiven for thinking that flyhalf Quade Cooper has been around for ages. Yet he was only 19 when the season began, and only turned 20 in April.
Cooper isn't even the youngest in the squad. Prop Ben Daley and lock Rob Simmons are both only 19!
Then we get to the Force, who have the distinction of counting amongst their ranks the youngest player ever to play Super Rugby.
Centre James O'Connor was the man (boy?) to smash that record when he came off the bench to replace the injured Tamaiti Horua late in the Force's 12-29 loss against the Reds in Brisbane on April 18.
O'Connor was only 17 years and 287 days old when he took the field for his franchise. Suddenly, Force teammates David Pocock (20) and lock Sam Wykes (20) looked like seasoned professionals!
It is clear that the Australian rugby officials believe in the mantra that if a player is good enough, he is old enough to play Super 14 rugby. Waratah Beale certainly fits that profile.
Despite his tender age, the prodigious No.10 is fast becoming a leading figure in Australian Rugby.
Not only has Beale been instrumental in the success of the semifinal-chasing Waratahs in the Super 14, he was also voted the Australian Rugby Championship player of the year for 2007, when he was still 18.
'Tahs skipper Phil Waugh certainly has his faith firmly fixed on Beale, and heaped praise on the player after their recent battle against the Stormers at a soaked Newlands.
"You can go on every game, he's only just turned 19 - the best thing about Kurtley he has grown not only as a footballer, but as a person," said the inspirational Waugh.
"Just being around him and the direction he gives the team and the confidence he has now is such a significant difference from where he was at last year.
"That's encouraging and he'll only get better.
"Experiences like these at Newlands are pretty special experiences. You look at blokes who's doing it for the first time, Luke Burgess, Kurtley, Tom Carter, Robert Horne - these guys are going to be better for that experience, it's one of the great stadiums of the world to play rugby at.
"And those guys will benefit from it down the track for sure."
Rugby union might not be the favourite sport amongst the Australian public, but with youngsters of this caliber bursting to the fore every year, Australian rugby seems in rude health indeed.
By Phil Coetzer
