NRL interest increases pressure on ARU to re-sign Waratahs star Kurtley Beale

THE ARU is under increasing pressure to secure star Kurtley Beale for next year’s World Cup as a switch to the NRL looms as one of his genuine options.

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THE ARU is under increasing pressure to secure star Kurtley Beale for next year’s World Cup as a switch to the NRL looms as one of his genuine options.

League legend Andrew Johns said on Sunday that Beale would be “an absolute sensation” as a fullback in the NRL, after The Sunday Telegraph reported that the Bulldogs want to sign Beale in that position for the 2015 season.

One of the most gifted players in Australia — former Wallabies coach Alan Jones recently said the national team should build their entire game plan around him — Beale is contemplating walking away in what would be a disaster for the financially struggling code.

MORE: Beale sparks Tahs, now sign him up

Waratahs coach Michael Cheika desperately wants Beale re-signed but is at the mercy of the ARU, who are understood to be awaiting a response from Beale on their offer for a contract extension.

Beale recently expressed his displeasure at starting on the Wallabies bench under national coach Ewen McKenzie during the three-Test series against France, so it appears that game time for Australia, and money, will be his two key considerations.

MORE: Lineout woes a worry for Waratahs

It would be a devastating blow for Australian rugby if they were to lose Beale, who was last year described by ARU boss Bill Pulver as “a national treasure” and is a shining beacon for indigenous rugby players as the Ella brothers and Andrew Walker were before him.

“Because of the way the new contracting is going, it is really up to the ARU, I’m sure they understand how important it is for us to keep him,” Cheika said.

Kurtley Beale was superb for the Waratahs against the Reds.

“We’ve already lost Kane [Douglas] this year.

“I’ll be doing everything I can to make sure I try to influence whoever is listening to do their best to keep him. But I’m not going to worry about something I’m not doing.

“I’m not going to kill myself over something I’m not doing, if I was doing it, then hopefully it would have been done by now already.

“But obviously they’re looking at things in a certain way, so I’ve just got to try to influence whoever I can over there to make sure that’s done.

“I’ve tried already, I’ve spoken to the relevant people.

“I’m not seeing it in a negative fashion, like there is a problem. Obviously whatever is happening in the negotiation is taking a bit of extra time.”

Johns made his comments on the Sunday Footy Show, as it emerged Bulldogs coach Des Hasler has made inquiries about Beale.

While he has been outstanding for NSW this year, Beale has been especially brilliant in the past fortnight as speculation intensifies over his future, with European and Japanese rugby also understood to be in the race for his signature.

All parties want Beale’s future sorted by the end of the Super Rugby season, which concludes on August 2.

MORE: Watch full highlights of the Waratahs’ big win over the Reds

“They’d want to try to have it done in the next couple of weeks, I couldn’t imagine them wanting it to drag on into the international window,” Cheika said of the ARU’s talks with Beale.

The ARU would not comment on its negotiations with Beale, while Beale also did not want to talk about his contractual situation or the link to the Bulldogs.

But after destroying Queensland’s defence on Saturday night in Brisbane, the 25-year-old revealed that studying footage of his direct opponents each week this year was the secret behind his success.

“Looking over footage during the week, looking at my opposition, giving an input into the strategy that we’ve got to use out on the field, looking at my opposite opponent, I haven’t done that for a while, and I certainly thinks that’s helped me playing the game I am today,” Beale said.

Kurtley Beale was all smiles after the Waratahs’ win over the Reds.

“There is a really good set-up at the Tahs, there’s access to all the games throughout the whole season, internationals, games over in Europe, and obviously the Super Rugby competition.

“Having access to that has helped me develop my game.

“I think consistently, yeah definitely [this Super Rugby season] is up there.

“That’s come off a lot of hard work, I know I’ve sacrificed a lot of things during the year, I had a big pre-season and I definitely owe it to that.

“Working hard with the boys has paid dividends, and I feel it out there on the field. Playing at No. 12, it’s a physical position to be in and I had to get my body up for that.

“It’s definitely helping when I’m playing consistent footy week in, week out.”

Beale scored two tries and directly set up another in the 34-3 win over the Reds — NSW’s biggest win over Queensland — as the Tahs romped into the semi-finals in first place.