Kurtley Beale is coming home, with the ARU announcing that he has signed a two-year deal to return to Australia from English rugby in 2018.
Beale will return to play with the Waratahs and the Wallabies after spending a season playing with the Wasps in England.
The deal will also see him get a good grounding back home in Australian Rugby in the lead up to the next Rugby World Cup, in Japan in 2019.
“It’s great to be heading back to Australian Rugby. I’m really looking forward to getting back home to the NSW Waratahs but also hopefully pull on the gold jersey later this year as well,” Beale said.
“I think the best place for me and my rugby right now is in Australia and I love what Cheik (Michael Cheika) is doing with the Wallabies.
“I have to say thank you to Wasps though, for the opportunity they have given me and my partner and I have learned a lot about rugby and myself. It’s been a great experience,” Beale said.
Cheika said he was looking forward to Beale’s return, and that the time away would have been beneficial to him.
“It’s great for Australian Rugby that we have Kurtley coming back to play his footy on home soil.”
“Even though he’s only been gone a year, it’s a very different Wallabies team now but he will have an important role to play for Australia and the Waratahs as well.
“He has obviously learned a lot from his time overseas so I’ll be looking for him to help the team reach higher standards this year,” Cheika said.
Beale has played 60 Test matches for the Wallabies after first making his debut against Wales in 2009.
He has appeared 124 times in the Super Rugby comp – 14 times for the Rebels, and 110 for the Waratahs.
Adsa
Guest
The Reds would not sign a player who gets on the soup and punches his captain or texts vile images to a female staff member, the Tahs though love that type of character in a player and will ink up at first opportunity. As for the Reds we should sign Bieber so Karmichael can mentor him in how not to take the rap for possession.
Oblonsky‘s Other Pun
Roar Guru
'unless you are George smith', I'm glad you added that little qualification!
Rhys Bosley
Guest
Nice to see the national coach using test spot guarantees as inducements to recruit for the Tahs, but anyway, if Beale is prepared to give up that sort of money to come back then that is a positive.
Rebellion
Guest
The Reds under the malignant 'Dick' Graham did have O'Connor - who no doubt possibly one of the worst blokes to pull on a rugby jersey in over a decade but would they have Kurtley? The answer is no. Kurtley is not a line breaker, has suspect defence and crumbles under pressure. They already have Cooper to do that and Cooper happens to be a better player in a position with a dire lack of depth in Aus rugby. Australian Rugby is just so bad at the moment. Please oh please SANZAR - make the ARU sack a couple of teams !!
Jock Cornet
Guest
Cheika give someone younger a go. He has had numerous tests with overall crap input. Once you go overseas that should be the end of your career unless you are George smith.
Gary Russell-Sharam
Guest
I'm a Reds supporter and I say a leopard doesn't change his spots
Rt
Guest
Haha, I bet if he signed with the reds there'd be hundreds of comments from reds supporters saying how much he'd matured and how well he's playing in the uk. Welcome home Kurtley, the tahs and Israel in particular have missed you.
Adsa
Guest
I wonder what Kurt loved the most from Clowns magic the 4 losses to England, the absolutely embarrassing loss to the Darkness in Bledisloe 1 or the touch up by Ireland?
Maroon Kev
Guest
I love what he's doing with the Wallabies!!! Getting them to lose games!!! HA!!!