Beale passes on kicking
Long-range efforts to go to Hodge
He kicked a 50-metre goal from the sideline to beat the Springboks on the Wallabies’ last visit to Bloemfontein.
But Kurtley Beale won’t be putting his hand up for more long-range bombs when Australia returns to the same venue this week.
He doesn’t have to. Not when Reece Hodge is in the team, and is equipped with a cannon in his right boot that can kick goals from well over 60 metres in the thin air of the South African high-veldt.
“Nah, mate. Hodgey’s your man,” Beale (pictured) said.
“I back him, he’s got a great boot on him.”
Last year, prior to the Wallabies’ Test in Pretoria, Hodge used the high altitude to send kicks over from “at least 60 on the angle” in training. He’d announced himself in Test rugby a month earlier by nailing a 55m penalty against the All Blacks.
But while Hodge may have the distance, Beale’s boot has the result on the board. And not just any result, but one of the Wallabies’ most famous.
When Beale kicked a post-siren penalty in 2010 from about 47 metres out – but with extra length added for being near the sideline – it secured the Wallabies’ first win on the high veldt in 47 years.
Now older and wiser, the Wallabies centre still treasures the memory.
“To win the (first) game up on the high veldt in 40 years, it was a pretty special moment for me and for the team, and it helped build momentum into that year. And it turned out to be a pretty good year for us,” Beale said.
The Boks clawed their way back after Australia led 21-6 and Beale blamed himself for falling behind with minutes left after the Boks scored a try soon after Beale suffered a ‘falcon’.
But when the Wallabies won a penalty in the 79th minute, and with Matt Giteau off, Beale stepped forward to kick it.
He hit it flush and though it pushed a little left, the fade that only accompanies the very sweetest kicks saw it go over. The Wallabies won 41-39.
“It felt good and as soon as it went over I was swamped by the boys,” Beale said.
The Wallabies needed to get a win last start when they downed the Pumas. This week they need to get a win on the road.
To do it in South Africa, and at high altitude once again, would be huge for the team’s psychology.
“Consistency is probably a big one for us – aiming for that consistency week in and week out is pretty important to the way we want to build into the season,” Beale said.