Veteran Wallaby Kurtley Beale is raring to go after being recalled to the squad by coach Dave Rennie for the final two rounds of the Rugby Championship.
Beale had been sidelined for six months following a hamstring injury while playing for Racing 92 but has now recovered and is back up to “top speed”.
Aiming for fourth World Cup
The utility back has recently signed for the Waratahs, aiding his chances of selection as he builds to a possible fourth World Cup appearance at next year’s showpiece event.
The 95-Test star is looking to rub his experience off on the Wallabies squad as they look to find some consistency in the 2022 Test season.
“I’m feeling good and am back to top speed now and and feel ready; I’m really excited to be back with the group,” said Beale.
“I feel ready now and if given an opportunity I’ll make sure that I put my best foot forward but if not, then I’ll just keep grinding away helping around the team and make the 23 who are selected are ready to go.
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“I’m keen to rub off on my experience on the group and try to help out the guys as much as I can to get the results we want.”
Beale offers incredible versatility across most of the backline, but his immediate target is to be physically ready for Test match intensity regardless of where he might play.
“I guess my versatility helps me … but I think in this group it will be in the outside backs, fullback, I’m assuming.
“The key message for me from David is to make sure that I’m sharp – pretty straight and simple.
“He wants me to make sure that I’ve got the speed, the agility that I once had and after a long injury, it’s important that I’m I’m confident in my ability to be able to display that.”
All to play for
The Rugby Championship is wide open heading into the Bledisloe Cup, with all teams having a chance to claim the title in the final two rounds.
The Wallabies are looking to win the Bledisloe for the first time since 2002, and Beale believes this squad has what it takes to topple the All Blacks.
“Absolutely and we feel that we can get the job done,” he said.
“We’ve got to respect the ABs – they’re a great team – but we have to go out with full belief.
“After South Africa there’s been a lot of constructive criticism and harsh conversations but they’re ones that will allow us to make sure we have our own backyard sorted to bounce back.”
The first Bledisloe Test is in Melbourne on Thursday next week before the final clash at Eden Park.