Following Saturday’s 12-12 Bledisloe Cup draw, surely the debate over Kurtley Beale playing 10 has been put to bed.
Kurtley Beale is one of the best in world rugby today and plenty want to see him succeed regardless of position.
However, setting our rose-tinted glasses aside, it is clear that Kurtley at 10 is a pipe dream.
There were certainly some positives in Beale’s performance, however he wasn’t able to settle into a rhythm in the new position and his soft hands, fast feet, and rare rugby talent went largely unseen for 80 minutes.
So let’s weigh up the pros and cons of KB at five-eighth, and see if we can perhaps come to a decision.
The first argument against Beale playing 12 has forever been his defence, with some believing 10 is more forgiving. But when it comes to the All Blacks, you get Ma’a Nonu at 12 and All Black forwards off Cruden’s hip at speed at 10. Neither is a place for a shrinking violet in defence.
Regardless, Beale held his own, which really shouldn’t come as a surprise given that he just finished a season, in the supposedly more challenging position, that culminated in the Waratahs winning the Super Rugby premiership. Furthermore, the Tahs conceded the second fewest tries and fewest total points of any team in that tournament. And did I mention that Beale marked the best 12s in the world throughout the Super season, including the freight-train like Nonu?
The second argument in support of Kurtley at five-eighth is his x-factor, which makes it hard for the All Black defence to settle, in turn creating opportunities for the men in gold.
While this wasn’t shown on Saturday, it’s not fair to judge Kurtley given the abhorrent conditions that accompanied his opportunity at 10.
What we can say with certainty is that when you have arguably the most dangerous attacking backline in the world, you do not need x-factor at first receiver.
What the Wallabies need at 10 is a field general. You need a player who can manage both the attack and defence with a certain level-headedness and poise, a player who can see the big picture, and most of all one with outstanding decision making, regardless of the occasion. These are not what KB is best at.
Beale is prone to being rattled at 10, and his body language during the game gave it away. His feet were not settled and his eyes were darting in every direction. Also, as has been in the case in the past, when he’s not sure of what to do Beale tries to do it all himself which too often ends in a turnover.
Compare that to Matt Toomua or Bernard Foley. Both have a certain aura and surety regardless of the situation, and simply play the game.
This tends to be the problem with ultra-creative playmakers, they are much better as front-runners and they run hot and cold. Quade Cooper and Carlos Spencer come to mind, among others.
So do not believe Steve Hansen’s conspiracy theory, no self-respecting front-row forward, least of all Ewen McKenzie, would knowingly select a player at the expense of the team. Remember how quickly James O’Connor was ousted?
However, in this case McKenzie has made an error of judgment, and to see why, we must swallow our pride and admit something to ourselves; in the era led by McKenzie and his old scrum partner from Randwick Michael Cheika, where Australia’s play is slowly regaining its iconic style, 12 is not ‘inside centre’. It is – as the New Zealanders call it – ‘second five-eighth’.
Kurtley Beale happens to be one of the best in the world at that interpretation of position. Not one thing he contributed on Saturday was as a result of him playing 10; his best work was in in second and third phases, where Toomua had started the preceding phase at first receiver.
If we take the masterful player that Kurtley Beale is and put him back where he should be, either Foley or Toomua will do the job at 10.
One would hope given his marvellous form, ball distribution, and dead-eye goal-kicking (which the Wallabies need desperately) that Foley should get the nod without hesitation.
The one positive we can take is that the odds paying for the Wallabies to win the Bledisloe would be pretty high right now, which is great because they clearly have a shot. But I for one, won’t be placing my bet until I read the team list next week.
To paraphrase the great Nick Farr-Jones at a breakfast I was lucky to attend last week, the selection of Kurtley Beale at number 10 against the All Blacks is a gamble that the Wallabies do not need to take.
TahDan
Roar Guru
"Have the Wallabies peaked?" Is that a reasonable question? This was this particular team's first outing together... do you really think they can only get worse from here? Because generally time together improves teams.
George
Guest
No frothing as you make good points whereas TahDan has rose coloured glasses & does the opposite. Toomua can defend whereas Beale cannot. Toomua is needed to cover Beale's weaknesses which then poses the question why play a person at test rugby level who cannot tackle - it is the $64 million question & please do not use the inane pathetic argument of "X" factor as that is pure rubbish. Beale's cross field running game gives his outside teammates very little room to move as they are hammered by the slide defence. It is very easy to defend when the attacking fly half runs diagonally rather than straight & a nightmare for the inside centre. Toomua's game has truly hampered by Beale's running game & ball delivery. Let us hope that Beale has a better game in Auckland as anything would be better than his Sydney performance. That Sydney test should have been won & there was no need to change the starting side from that of the French series.
Squirrel
Guest
He would not have a clue what Beale is going to do.
DC-NZ
Guest
that was an All Blacks off day and thats when we slip up. Think 15-20 in Melbourne in 2007. Think 19-34 in Sydney in 2008, and remember 21-38 vs England in 2012. All poor shows and losses....yes we remember our losses us Kiwis. Last week Australia had the adrenaline, a helpful ref, and lots of ball. Beale, Toomua, Foley should have done better. However the AB defense was very very good. There was no way through and the Wallabies will be frustrated about that. Its a very long RC and NZ are far away from hitting their stride. Have the Wallabies peaked?
Xenomorph
Guest
"plenty want him to succeed" No they dont. The vast majority dont even want to give him a chance on this site. One of the best players in Super Rugby this year was ridiculed and belittled before his selection, a selection that most didnt want or wanted to select him on the wing (wtf). He was then selected to utter surprise to people who were against him from the start and howls of "hes not going to work". Then he played a game in the wet where neither team managed to do much and that was it, it was proven that hes not a flyhalf. This is really pathetic. My honest opinion. This is nothing but a witch hunt where people want to smear Kurtley as much as possible. Even this article has suggested the idea that Kurtley is a flyhalf is quite silly. Funny how Australias head coach cant see it and selects him as first choice over Foley. As soon as the game was finished there were people smearing Beale with things that wernt true, just to attack him. Without a word of a lie I have heard that Beale doesnt run it enough, doesnt engage the defense, is too greedy, runs too much, cant catch, cant tackle, cant play flyhalf, he crabs all the time, he runs sideways, isnt up to international standard, should play wing, is not a flyhalf, stands too deep, cant pass, doesnt pass, is a 12, should be on the bench, isnt a good fullback, has achieved nothing at international level and on and on. That one game in the wet proved all that to be true too. Wow. He played OK considering. Not a great night for him to display his skills. Hes been one of the worlds best players when in form at fullback. Hes played a lot at flyhalf this year and done very well there. He took over from Foley in the last 7-8 games of the season as the main distributer for the team, the Tahs won all of those games. He is a nominee for best international player in the world. He won the John Eales medal for Australias best international player. He is very talented. He should be given an opportunity to show his skills. Hes a reluctant and poor defender. Hes struggled for fitness and form for the last 2 years. This is reasonable. Saying after 1 game in the wet that he isnt right is ridiculous. Fair go? No f---ing way.
Jack
Guest
It's not last year and we're not playing wales and Ireland. Toomua was awful on Saturday and really shouldn't be back this week..
Jack
Guest
McCabe and Horne are both pretty ordinary wingers and McCabe in particular did absolutely nothing during the match. He's a good tackler, but he's a terrible finisher and we're not gonna score much out wide with him there.
Jack
Guest
He did, and that was the problem. If you pay attention they really tried to recreate the Beale-Foley setup, and Toomua is really the one in at 10 most often. The trouble was, whilst he's a strong tackler he creates nothing and has no vision when it comes to his kicking game. Not once did he produce a kick that created any pressure. That's a problem.
Ken Stewart
Guest
The dry track suits the All Blacks not the mud.
Jack
Guest
Disagree. For mine Toomua played the worst of the three. Made mistakes and offered absolutely nothing.
Jack
Guest
What did you think of Toomua just out of curiosity? I know it's fashionable to bag Beale, but I didn't think Toomua was any better. He threw passes at guys feet, kicked without purpose and made no breaks. I say put Foley and Beale back together.
Jack
Guest
Wow... That was an aggressive post. I really don't get all this obsession with Beale. Sure he wasn't perfect, but Toomua really let us down with some very poor vision and execution with his kicking game. He was supposed to straighten the attack and he didn't, and probably spent more time at 10 than Beale anyway. For mine he's the problem. I hope disagreeing with you won't make you froth at the mouth with an abusive tirade like you did to TahDan though... Please take a deep breath before replying if that helps ;).
niwdeyaj
Guest
why does cooper have to be mercurial, yet your preference is beale who is a flake?
Yogi
Guest
Not only that but with foley on the bench there is no option to drop white and bring in phipps, because white is needed as a goal kicker to back up KB. Foley and phipps needed to be promoted to the 15 and white and beale benched. The foley/phipps axis was missed even more in the wet than it will be this weekend in Auckland. Beale was a very poor selection for a wet track. I am not usually one for making rash changes after a signle match, but in this case I think it is necessary. What is going on with link? i have always thought he is the master of level headed team selection. i hope he sorts himself out! I am thinking that unless there is a turn around by end of RC he also needs to try an alternative to fardy at #6.
hoqni
Guest
Hugo, the Folau over pass saved the ABs
Midfielder
Guest
Thanks Markus
hoqni
Guest
Hoy Hoy Hoy. Barnes had more chances than Dan Carter
Markus
Guest
Australia's standard is 30 in the squad, plus 5 in an extended player squad that can be called in to cover injuries among the primary 30. I understand South African squads are a bit larger than this.
Hugo
Guest
Beale is a risk. Gives up a lot of ball when tackled. However, Link won't buy Foley and is going with the same team for Eden Park. They say you don't change a winning team. How about a drawing team? Would Foley have taken a quick tap instead of winning the game with an easy penalty? Take a look at the game again if you have it recorded. There are two standout moments which saved the AB's from defeat - Cruden's tackle on AAC after AAC had beaten Nonu (who had a nightmare game and will miss Eden Park) and Savea's tackle on McCabe. The return of Smith and Messam will make the ABs stronger. Gonna be tough sledding for the WBs.
Pedro the Maroon
Guest
Second outing this weekend. Then KB at 10 experiment can finally be ended. Without quick ball, bakcline struggles to find space. KB's instinct is to kick or to run at the line - not to pass. He still thinks he playing under 12's and has more pace and flair than the other 12 year olds. I'm sure he was a superstar at age 12. As a man facing seasoned professionals in the ABs, he needs more than pace and flair. He needs vision. The greats seem to have more time to do whatever they do (Wally Lewis) - KB does not have that freaksih ability to have 5 options at any given time which always keeps the defence wary and hanging back. Charles might be found out in drier conditions too.