On track for the Kurtley Express

[Burgs]

On track for the Kurtley Express

Sunday, December 3, 2006, Rugby Heaven/SMH

Kurtley Beale faces a character-building exercise before he even gets to training with the Waratahs, Daniel Lane writes.

The hype surrounding Kurtley Beale's arrival to rugby union's big time has overshadowed the way he's been arriving at Waratahs training.

Beale, the 17-year-old described as rugby's next superstar, is using the transport used by thousands of other apprentices - train and bus.

He captained the Australian Schoolboys team a few weeks ago and was at one stage touted as a candidate to tour Europe with the Wallabies, but now he's dealing with reality.

That means setting his alarm for 5am every day, packing the tools of his trade into his kitbag - boots, runners, socks, shorts, training shirt - and hopping on the 7.31am express from Mount Druitt to Central before catching a bus to Moore Park.

Beale passes the expensive cars that belong to his NSW teammates as he crosses the Aussie Stadium car park, but the least of the teenager's concerns is a set of wheels. He's preoccupied with all things rugby.

"The train isn't too bad," he said. "I've settled into the routine fine and it gets me to training on time. I see the same faces doing exactly what I'm doing, they're going to work.

"Anyway, this is what I've been waiting for. While I enjoyed going to school at Joey's, I wanted to be free to join the outside world. It's laid-back and it's exciting . . . it's exactly what I wanted, so I'm not going to complain about the train."

Nevertheless, the three-hour round trip and tough training sessions are a far cry from the life he led a few weeks ago when he was a border at St Joseph's College, Hunters Hill. There, he seemed to have everything at his disposal. The gym was only a few metres from his dormitory, the cafe was close by, and the library and classrooms were all a short walk away.

"I think this is good for Kurtley," said Rob Horton, who manages him with Glen Ella. "He's moved back into his family home in the western suburbs but he's being made to be responsible by getting himself to training on time.

"And I'm sure by catching that train every morning he's going to have a greater appreciation for whatever comes his way."

Beale is also painfully aware now he has left school that he'll come under tight scrutiny from rugby fans well aware of his reputation.

Few have seen him play, but the media have documented the battle between the two rugby codes to recruit him, the fact he was signed to a Waratahs deal at 16, the effort by the Western Force to lure him to Perth and the anecdotes of how he amazed players such as Lote Tuqiri and Mat Rogers when he attended a skills session aged 15.

Yet, after his first four weeks as a Waratah - he's bidding to play in the five-eighth jumper - he's learnt the value of a good night's sleep.

"The intensity at training has been incredible," he said. "Physically, my body has been adapting to the tougher demands I've had to ask of it. It's a matter of having to lift to another level each week.

"I've put on one kilo - I'm 89kg now but the conditioning staff want me to play at 91, so we'll have to keep working hard. But what I'm focused on is doing the little things well."

Beale's first few weeks with the Waratahs have been frustrated by a slight groin problem but he seems to have adapted well to life as a professional footballer.

"I knew what to expect," he said. "When I was at school I trained with the squad once a week, so it's not as if everything has been a shock."

[The Lone Hydrangea]

Nice shade of powder blue

[Sagerian]

Cheeky buggers...

[.X.]

if the shade fits...........

[Sagerian]

Well it is pretty.


He sounds like a pretty switched on kid by the way...

[Burgs]

Beale's plan for stardom

By Peter Badel
January 14, 2007

KURTLEY Beale has been earmarked as Australia's next Mark Ella and potential saviour at this year's World Cup in France.

But the 18-year-old, named after West Indies cricketing legend Curtly Ambrose, is aiming even higher than that. The rising five-eighth has dreams of becoming a dual international.

And following in his footsteps is 14-year-old brother William, who plays for Penrith in its Harold Matthews rep side.

"I love rugby but I'm a big fan of league as well," said Beale, who first played league before switching to the 15-man code at St Joseph's high school.

"I look at guys like Mat Rogers, Wendell Sailor and Lote Tuqiri and to play for Australia in two different sports would be an unbelievable thing.

"It's a direction I could see myself going later in my career. But for now there's a lot I want to achieve in rugby."

The gifted playmaker is starting to make a name for himself and is expected to figure in New South Wales' Super 14 campaign this season.

But the laconic teenager sees the funny side of that, too - for 18 years, everyone has been spelling his name incorrectly (even the man himself).

A staffer at the Waratahs was recently gathering documents for Beale's trip to Fiji and New Zealand as captain of the Australian Schoolboys when she stumbled across a discrepancy that harbours an intriguing story.

Curtly Beale's name is linked with the West Indies fast bowler who terrorised world cricket for over a decade.

"Apparently I'm named after Curtly Ambrose," says Beale, who celebrated his 18th birthday eight days ago.

"When my mum brought me home from hospital, my grandfather was watching the West Indies on TV and he said, 'You're naming him Curtly'.

"I was going to be called William, after my father, but my grandfather liked the name Curtly and it stuck."

Beale still has no idea why he started to change the spelling of his name -replacing the C with a K and adding an E. He is in the process of applying to change his name to Kurtley via deed poll.

"You could call it my stage name," he jokes.

"I have to change it because if I'm travelling overseas I don't want the authorities thinking I'm a fraud by having a different name."

He's been earmarked as the next big thing in Australian rugby for two years and if the good judges have got it right, the wonder boy from St Joseph's will be boarding a flight to France for the World Cup in September.

Wary of exposing him too soon, NSW coach Ewen McKenzie expects the gifted five-eighth to be playing a bit-part role this season.

Beale admits going from the safety net of Joeys to the professional ranks has challenged him.

"It's been a bit daunting," he said.

"For the first few weeks I struggled. I'm still trying to find a spot where I'm comfortable. But the guys have been great, particularly Daniel Halangahu and Sam Norton-Knight.

"All I'm worried about is getting a run with the Waratahs. With Mat Rogers moving on, the door is open for me. I would like to break into the team this year."

[Burgs]

Beale ready to make his mark

By Adrian Warren
January 18, 2007

TEENAGE NSW Waratahs rugby prospect Kurtley Beale isn't fazed by all the hype surrounding his elevation to the senior ranks and can't wait for his first crack at the big boys in Saturday's pre-season trial against ACT Brumbies in Wollongong.

Five-eighth Beale, 18, who starred for the Australian Schoolboys side last year, has been earmarked as a potential Australia player for at least a couple of years.

He wasn't named in the starting side for Saturday, but NSW coach Ewen McKenzie confirmed the teenager would get a run off the bench.

Beale said it was hard not to pay attention to all the hype around him.

"I try and stay home a lot and chill out a bit, but it doesn't really faze me at all," Beale said.

"It's always there in front of me, but all I try and do is just ignore it."

Beale has been putting in plenty of conditioning work to ensure his 184cm, 88kg, frame can handle the step up to senior level.

"I've been training six days a week (since) just before Christmas up to now," Beale said.

"We've been having conditioning sessions and speed sessions, so I'll be able to match that speed for myself and also for the game tempo.

"I haven't played a game since the Australian Schoolboys tour late last year, I just can't wait to get out there and have my first game for the Waratahs."

McKenzie described Beale as "an exceptional player" and didn't think it would be long before the teenager adjusted to the extra speed and physicality of senior rugby.

"There are still physical gains that he needs to make and you can't rush those things, they will happen over time," McKenzie said.

Former World Cup winning prop McKenzie played alongside legendary five-eighth Mark Ella and he said there were certainly parallels and similarities between that player and Beale.

"He (Beale) had a strong rugby league background when he was a bit younger, he might actually be a better defender than Mark Ella ever was, defence in those days wasn't a big part of the game," McKenzie said.

"I think there are a lot of similarities and it's mainly in that time to operate, they just seem to have more than anyone else."

Daniel Halangahu who started several Super 14 games last year, was chosen as the starting five-eighth ahead of Beale for Saturday's game.

With just two trials, McKenzie opted to start several of his other youngsters against the Brumbies while leaving more established players on the bench.

AAP

[The Lone Hydrangea]

Wow, it is a express! Hope they dont do his head in before develops as a player and man.

[Burgs]

Second half of an article by:

Rupert Guinness
Friday, March 2, 2007

....Meanwhile, Western Force coach John Mitchell believes 18-year-old Waratahs sensation Kurtley Beale has a chink in his mental armour that might be exposed in tonight's local derby against NSW at Aussie Stadium.

The former New Zealand coach may rate Beale with All Blacks star Carlos Spencer, whom he says "was probably the most gifted footballer I have seen".

But yesterday Mitchell said instinctive rugby brilliance can also be their undoing. "When you are gifted and instinctive like Kurtley you can tend to premeditate what's in your mind as opposed to indentifying what's in front of you," he said. "And when you are challenged by defensive teams in your career those gifted players sometimes don't take the opportunity that the opposition presents. That is probably going to be the biggest growth curve for Kurtley."

Mitchell was speaking after reading yesterday's Herald in which he said he was reminded of how Spencer was rattled after being savaged by a fierce Wallabies defence in the 2003 World Cup semi-final lost by the All Blacks side he coached.

"I saw that and thought, that's one thing bringing up the World Cup semi-final," said Mitchell, then explaining how Spencer's decision-making waned.

"Maybe [to find what went wrong] we need to go back to the first 15 minutes of that semi-final when we had plenty of opportunity.

"Maybe [it was] a choice by Carlos: rather than sending a pass from an untidy situation when there is a kicking option or an inside option before that."

Beale, who will be up against Matt Giteau in what should be a sensational one-on-one clash, will have been fully versed on what to expect from the Force.

As much as Mitchell will be wanting to rattle Beale, he still believes the best way for him to develop is for him to play his natural game.

"The only way people will learn is by experience," said Mitchell. "The key thing is to allow him to be himself. Don't over-structure him. Players that have gifts like him, they won't handle a massive structure going forward."

[Iris]

I think Kurtley is a bit out of his depth in this one.....I have a strong feeling we may all witness that tonight. Giteau is by far the superior player.

[Burgs]

Gits showed me how it's done: Beale

c/o Rugby Heaven
Monday, March 5, 2007

Teenage sensation Kurtley Beale admits Western Force star Matt Giteau handed him a lesson in playing five-eighth in their much-hyped Super 14 showdown but has vowed to raise his game when the NSW Waratahs host the Bulls on Saturday night.

The Waratahs and Force may have played out a 16-16 draw on Friday night but Giteau was a clear winner over Beale in their head-to-head battle, the Wallabies star setting up one try for Drew Mitchell before producing a brilliant solo effort to give his team a share of the points.

Beale was anything but poor, initiating NSW's only try with a crisp cut-out pass to Morgan Turinui, but was otherwise quiet.

"I did a few things that I missed out on. I could have done a little bit extra," Beale said on Monday.

"Obviously, the game turned out not the way we wanted it to be. My game personally, I don't think I matched my performance, my goals that I wanted to achieve.

"It was a good experience playing against a classy player like him (Giteau). I went into the game with a lot of confidence and I came out of the game with a lot of knowledge. Playing against him, I learnt a lot.

"The first touch, (he said to me) 'you're not getting around me mate' and all this kind of stuff. It was a bit of a laugh and giggle. It was all part of the game and all fun.

"Footy-wise, that calm composure. He's a world-class player."

The critics are calling for Beale to run the ball more but the gifted 18-year-old said that wasn't in the Waratahs' game plan against a Force outfit devoid of injured captain and chief lineout winner Nathan Sharpe.

"I thought I ran the ball a lot more than usual, but Link (coach Ewen McKenzie) came out with a call to put it (the ball) behind them and try to get some field position.

"Nathan Sharpe wasn't there and hopefully (we could) find a weakness in their lineout, but obviously that didn't really turn out."

McKenzie said it was unfair to expect too much too soon from a rookie barely out of high school and playing his first Super 14 season.

"We're asking an 18-year-old kid to go out there and run a tight game in pretty difficult conditions. I've been asking him to do that every week," McKenzie said.

"I accept the fact he's going to make the odd mistake but he's putting in his all out there.

"He got belted a couple of times (against the Force) and he showed plenty of character to push through that and keep going."

Vice-captain Morgan Turinui also urged pundits to be patient.

"The important thing with him is that he is 18 years old," Turinui said.

"He is a great player at the moment, but he is probably too young to control the whole game for us.

"Maybe we are asking too much of him."

Far from feeling the burden of expectation, Beale was taking in his stride comparisons between him and the legendary Mark Ella, another prodigiously-talented Aboriginal five-eighth who many considered to be Australia's greatest-ever player.

"If people want to compare me to that, it is a great thing for me to be compared to such a great player," he said.

"All I'm focused on is the small things and try and play footy week in and week out."

AAP

[Sagerian]

He's got a ways to go yet. I mean even the mighty savior Quade Cooper made some monumental screw ups on the weekend pinning his team deep in their own territory.

They'll both get better and the best thing about them (might as well throw names like Barnes and Dorf into this) is they'll inspire the other to lift their game for national selection.