The backline juggle to replace his No.1 attacking weapon seems certain to steer Wallabies coach Michael Cheika to Kurtley Beale.
No true Welsh fan will forget the heartache at Millennium Stadium in 2012 when the home side seemingly had the Test won with a turnover at 12-9 with under two minutes to play.
Rhys Priestland’s deep kick found open turf yet the Wallabies somehow uncorked a 70m raid to dash Welsh hopes of ending a dire run against Australia.
Beale had already broken into a gleeful grin mid-air before he landed his dive for that winning try and 14-12.
Cheika has wanted to find a way to utilise the flinty make-up of code convert Karmichael Hunt and the perfect opportunity now exists.
Cheika may throw up three possibilities at fullback and as many options in the centres but Beale at the back and promoting Hunt at No.12, with his starchy defence, is the ideal mix.
Beale’s stutter-step, his change of pace when joining the line and his scanning for opportunities is a huge asset from full back. He slides into the backfield as a second full back even when Folau plays.
Playing at No.15 also still allows him to chime in as a second playmaker beside fly half Bernard Foley. The Wallabies attack has lifted immensely this year with 42 tries from 10 Tests compared to 39 in the 15 played in 2016.
Beale’s connection to the now-annual contests between the countries is significant.
He was a precocious Aboriginal kid of just 20 when he made his Test debut for the final 10 minutes of the 2009 meeting in Cardiff and some kick-and-regather magic the following year was part of a man-of-the-match effort.
Beale has been in the best form of his career this season at inside centre since returning from a European stint with English club Wasps.
The enigmatic figure has played as well for other stretches during his 67-Test career but never with the yappy leadership skills he is now displaying for young players around him.
His own rugby childhood was rather longer than most hoped in Australian rugby.
There was 2014’s unsavoury texting scandal and boozy incidents, including the hefty fine and suspension for a post-nightclub run-in with former Welsh international Gareth Delve and Cooper Vuna in Durban when they were teammates for the Melbourne Rebels in 2013.
Those dramas all seem in the rear vision mirror for Beale at 28.
The recent 23-18 overthrow of the All Blacks in Brisbane had extra meaning for Beale.
He was a key figure in the whole process that resulted in the proud wearing of the Wallabies’ first indigenous jersey. Beale loved his stint with Wasps but it also built his desire to be back with the Wallabies.
“I felt like I was missing out to keep achieving in the game. To get the chance to continue this journey … I will empty the tank for Australian rugby,” Beale said.
“As a team I feel we are playing a lot more consistent but there is so much hard work to go to build towards what we believe we can achieve.”
Beale’s greatest urgency has been with driving the Wallabies to play out the full 80 minutes. When the team has fought two tense draws with the Springboks and two Tests against the All Blacks have come down to the final minutes, that margin when trying to rise in the world rankings is fine indeed.
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