Beale exits Waratahs

Agreed. He is lazy and wasted his talent. I am surprised he's managed to stay in pro rugby for so long. I guess it's because of Cheika mostly or politics of inclusion. Whatever it is, it's not his rugby skills. What baffles me is that Penney said it's a big loss or something. Hope he wasn't serious.

He never ever did want to do either. He was raised with his promoters whispering admiration in his ear and, when he got to seniors and discovered he was no longer school kiddie king, he was not equipped to grow beyond that wunderkind fable and the delusion it gifted him. He could not pass accurately, position himself always - every time - in the best support location (as elite players do) or, when he had the ball himself, run to his supporters or kick tactically for their benefit because he had been taught to play only for the benefit of his best ever in the world self. The coaches around him then did a lousy job, he had more potential than his senior career displayed. Beale would have played about 3½ club games, which is a bit like going directly from primary school to university and missing six years of vital high school learning in the process. That's just the physical ability component. Mentally I believe he matured to about 15 years old and pulled on the hand brake. His attitude, his indifferent attention to training and fitness, his behaviour and his failure to appreciate the privilege which fell his way all broadcast his mediocrity. The ARU spent - wasted - a fortune on this bloke and he did not deliver.

I honestly can't remember KB making a dominant tackle by himself

He also doesn't like to tackle and being tackled lol. Simply doesn't like rugby anymore

Who's going to aimlessly run across the field eventually gifting a ball to the opposition? :shocked: Good news for the tahs. Long overdue

He still does a lot of hard work, definitely way more useful than Beale for example. His kicks though...

He's probably the worst Test level FB I've ever seen under a high ball. When some of the the "great minds" on this website were pushing for him to oust Folau from 15 I used to wonder what the hell drugs they were on.

Its not about taking sides. RA should be about keeping the best players in Australia. If Rodda is legally able to break his contact and play with another Australian franchise, then I don't see why RA care what franchise he's at. It's the Reds' problem, and I say that as a Reds fan. I'm all about having the best talent on the pitch. And in an open market for talent, the best players are going to have all the leeway in the world to go where it fits best for them. Not recognising this is burying your head in the sand.

Isn’t ‘Salor vie’ when you wish Wendell all the best?

Well put Sinclair.

You'll have seen from how the Blues operate that being a waterboy is not something where we let anybody and everybody in.

Beale tackle! you must be joking.

"classy utility" - best oxymoron I've heard in a long time.

Even the mention of Buck sends a shiver through this particular spine. I still think it is not too late to bring back Buck! He remains a really good commentator on the game and on loose forward play. He identified that Feral Mullet (Squire) ran lines more like an 8 and it was a spot on observation (later confirmed by FM himself). Read's defensive lineout work (and challenges at kick off/restart) were outstanding and his judgement in this area will be really hard to replace. I think all the young 8's still have some polishing to do and I still think there are balance issues at 6 and 8 that are difficult but the 8 situation looks more hopeful now.

Beale was a mercurial player and his behaviour often really rankled with me but I admired his fierce competitive spirit, the joy that he often played with, his ability to pull off some unexpected moves and his role in some truly wonderful moments. He played a big part in the good things at NSW in 2014 and 2015 and for Oz in 2015. I struggle to forgive him for his part in the demise of two coaches who did a lot for his career but this is not the time to go to deep into those things. I do believe that some of his on field failures, especially in recent seasons came about because he felt pressure to do too much to lift struggling teams. In terms of his negatives, we have also yet to really hear from him on those things. For now, let's remember his brilliance as an 18-19 year old for NSW in the mid-2000's when there sure as hell wasn't much to be cheerful about in Oz rugby, his fine performances when NSW contested the final with Canterbury (his kick for Turner to score the first try of the final), his late long distance penalty kick for a rare test win in SA in 2010 and many, many other moments. Let's also pay tribute to his ability to overcome some real adversity in his life and for putting a pretty light frame through the rugby mill for many, many seasons. Thanks for the great memories and all the best for your next season/s.

We have so much to replace with Read going but Sotutu seems to have the most bases covered. Lineout work looks good (this will be our biggest miss), big work rate, pressure on the 9/10 channels, sound tackler, and an attacking threat. Interesting comments from Buck on him this week - far more cautious than most of the media.

Of the three really promising young 8's in the NZ Super sides this season, Sotutu stands out as making the least mistakes, appearing to have the best positional game and to have an old head on young shoulders.

Never learnt how to consistently take a high ball under pressure either. These failures to learn and improve over time we see from so many Aussie players of past 15 yrs are obviously poor attitude issues

So they should encourage Rodda wanting to break his agreement with the Reds? That's really the nub of it. They either support the Reds, or support Rodda. I'm no fan of Thorn at all. But Rodda was happy to commit to the Reds and Thorn. So while Thorn may be the reason why he wants out (may not too) Rodda has to own part of it.

I think that's rank amateur behaviour from RA if that's true.