The Waratahs had one of their last hit outs today at Moore Park before the road trip to Albury on Tuesday to play the Melbourne Rebels on Saturday, February 1. and everybody knew that starting spots for the season were “up for grabs.”
This was particularly so in the backline, and Waratahs’ fans have been intrigued about who is going to play where.
Kurtley Beale or Israel Folau at fullback—or why not play Izzy at outside centre, wouldn’t he be fantastic there?
That’s a common remark but assistant coach Daryl Gibson put the kibosh on that today when he said:
Israel had such a stellar year at fullback, in my opinion he is one of the best fullbacks in the world and we would be loath to shift him from that position.
Yet this writer can declare that Kurtley Beale has been outstanding in pre-season training and once he was cleared to go into full contact mode before the holiday break the Tahs trainers and coaches must have been pleased.
Gibson agreed today; he has been impressed:
He’s steadily got better and better and I think, as the confidence has grown with the shoulder, he’s really getting stuck into contact now.
He’s in very good shape: his skin folds right from Day 1 were very good and he’s shown the [athleticism] in his body, and is definitely performing very well at training.
Fair enough with Izzy at fullback then, but where to play Kurtley?
He’ll certainly get a run at fullback in Albury. It is unlikely that late Wallabies arrivals: Folau, Ashley-Cooper and Hooper will play in the first trial, though Gibson said that the coaching group is still discussing it.
But should Beale be the flyhalf? Not likely with new Wallaby, Bernard Foley, executing Cheika’s plans so well in the 10 jersey last year.
Should Beale play at inside centre? This is attractive: to have a ball runner, yet also a facilitator, outside of the flyhalf as the second receiver, yet robust enough these days to greet big bopper ball carriers on the tackle line.
Yet Gibson said today: “We see him mainly as a 10 and 15”.
So who would have the 12 jersey?
Gibson spoke only about two candidates. He saw the versatile Jono Lance playing there, and along with Rob Horne, they would have contrasting styles that would serve the Waratahs well whatever kind of game they wanted to play.
When I asked him about goal-kickers Gibson said the Tahs had “seven or eight” goal kickers, working with Andrew Mehrtens, the goal-kicking coach.
I when I questioned further—about the dearth of left-foot kickers, he said:
We do lack[them]: we don’t have any in our squad and it’s made tactical kicking a little more difficult.
Expect opponents to kick deep to the Waratahs’ right-hand side of the field.
Jono Lance, the only Waratah player who has experienced Super Rugby success (for the Reds) is going well in the pre-season and was voted the best trainer.
He said he didn’t have a pre-season with the Reds in 2011 the year they won. He was playing Sevens most of the time, and because of injuries he got to play at the end of the season including the semi and final. It was lucky for him and it was “definitely one of the greatest moments of my life”.
He said he played a lot at fullback when he got a chance at the Reds and he enjoyed that, but:
One of he main reasons I came down here was to cement myself as a centre […] I see myself more as a centre: you get your hands on the ball a bit more often.
If there are no injuries before Round One and no conspicuous lapses in form from 10. Foley, 12. Lance, 12. Horne and 13. Ashley-Cooper in the trials, my guess is that Beale will have to play on one of the wings at the start of the season. This supposes that Beale will trial as the best goal-kicker.
There has been little discussion about the forwards, with the biggest question being: who will take the last two spots in the squad—one for a contracted player and another for an EPS member (a hooker and prop, in any order)—but the Waratahs are playing their cards close to their chests.
Footnote
But there was one interested party watching the forwards training today and he looked familiar, but it couldn’t be.
Yes it was—Leo Cullen, the Leinster and ex-Ireland player. The 35-five-year-old Cullen is retiring at the end of the northern season and will replace Leinster forwards coach Jono Gibbes, who is moving on to Clermont to coach in the Top 14.
When I recovered from the handshake of the big second-rower I suggested he was a long way from home and asked if he was picking up some coaching tips from Michael Cheika, who used to coach him at Leinster.
The affable Irishman joked: “No, he’s learning from the other fellow,” [himself].
I laughed and suggested that he work on his suntan.
It needed work.
Photos by Lee Grant
See below for slideshow of Waratahs’ training today
