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Halangahu vows he won't die wondering
Rupert Guinness, c/o Rugby Heaven
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Kurtley Beale may have requested that a media ban be slapped on him to minimise the number of headlines pumping him up as a superstar in the making before he has even cemented his place in the Waratahs.
But that hasn't stopped the man against whom he is competing for the NSW No.10 jersey, Daniel Halangahu, from mischievously anointing Beale with the sort of nickname that he surely knew would stick - at least for the infancy of his career.
Asked the question yesterday about how he felt having the dazzling 18-year-old "breathing down his neck", Halangahu - four years older and 13 Super 14 caps the wiser - laughed before saying: "There's a lot of chat about the 'Wonder Kid', but I am just here to help him along if I can."
Halangahu, 22, is today expected to be named as the Waratahs' starting No.10 for their round-one Super 14 match against the Lions in the high altitude of Johannesburg on Friday night, South African time.
But if he is, he knows "Wonder Kid" Beale will be sitting anxiously on the bench tapping his toes on the grass of Ellis Park, waiting for that inevitable touch on the shoulder when the message to run on comes from coach Ewen McKenzie.
And when Beale does, Halangahu will be as excited as anyone to watch. As Halangahu said yesterday: "Everyone says he is the excitement machine."
However, competition between the two can benefit Halangahu, too. "You can't be looking over your shoulder too much," he said. "The more we help each other - as I have said, with the competitiveness in the team - is just great."
Halangahu, who made his Super 14 debut last year in round two against the Stormers, has also learned that life on the Waratahs back line is about having stars around you - and that relative anonymity has its pluses.
When past and present stars who preceded Beale, such as Wendell Sailor, Mat Rogers, Lote Tuqiri, are named, Halangahu simply smiles, shrugs and says: "Most of us just try and lay low, like Morgan Turinui, and just do our job."
But don't mistake that as a sign Halangahu is a man who lacks self-esteem or has a complex. He is deceptively fast, can play fullback and even halfback. And in two trials he has impressed sufficiently to warrant a starting berth, regardless of the fact Beale's inexperience and youth have convinced McKenzie to ease him into Super 14 slowly.
And while Halangahu may be a teammate, like anyone vying for a jersey that was only made for one, he will not be giving his younger protege any gifts.
"In a way, we are both similar. We both like to run the ball and put people in holes," he said. "Kurtley has that little edge. He has a lot to offer. And that will come out this year as he develops.
"I am just working on what I need to do: improve my kicking game, and keep going with what I need to do. Every opportunity I get, I need to impress. Once the side is settled it's very difficult to get back into that 22."
Interest in the Waratahs will not just be on Beale, however. Attention will also be on how they fare after leaving it until tomorrow morning to depart for South Africa - arriving just 51 hours before a high-altitude game.
Second-rower Will Caldwell, who will also likely be named in the starting XV and assigned the task of calling the lineouts, is unfazed by the short lead-in time.
"We will try to acclimatise as quick as we can, get in the time zone straight away," said Caldwell, who will share second-row duties with fellow King's School old boys Ben Hand and Dean Mumm.
"When we hop on the plane, we are not allowed to eat. We are locked straight down and straight to sleep. We will have a meal before we jump on and [go] straight to sleep and hopefully get in that time zone as quick as we can."
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