Beale ‘ a modern Ella’
KURTLEY Beale has been lauded as the equal of any footballer in Australia by former Wallabies coach Alan Jones.
The Barbarians coach feels that the pall over a season of poor on- field performances from Australian teams and administrative blundering has obscured a proper appreciation of Beale’s maturity, playmaking and sheer resilience.
“He’s a freak – the modern day Mark Ella who can do everything,” Jones said of the Wallabies centre.
“I hope the board of Australian rugby understand the damage they have done to the image of the game and the consequence of devaluing the showpiece of the Wallabies.
“These boys have been swimming against the tide with the rubbish that has gone on with the Western Force, SANZAAR and money issues. The public have thought they are better off watching Cam Smith and the beautiful rugby league of the Melbourne Storm, AFL or Timmy Cahill but the Wallabies are as good.
“This Test can be a proper appreciation. Beale is as good as any football athlete in the country bar none.”
Few moments in Beale’s 66- Test career will have meant as much as running out tonight at Suncorp Stadium to face the All Blacks in the first indigenous jersey worn by an Australian national team.
Jones believes the Wallabies – 13- point underdogs tonight – can topple Kieran Read’s all- conquering world champions and end a sevenTest “Blackout” in Bledisloe Cup clashes.
Jones scoffed at Bledisloe scars from thrashings and near- miss heartbreakers like Dunedin in August.
Beale’s late diving try to put the Wallabies ahead in Dunedin would have entered folklore for the first Test win on Kiwi soil in 16 years but for the All Blacks’ mighty pass try at the death.
“The only scar is wrongly thinking that history has to be honoured,” Jones said.
“History is there stood on its head.
“We can play with a certain freedom because the Bledisloe Cup stuff is over ( 2- 0) and the pressure is on the Kiwis.” five- to be