Mark Nawaqanitawase flies like Israel Folau

It seemed Australian rugby had seen the last of a player soaring through the air to regain the ball from the kick-off.

Waratah Mark Nawaqanitawase takes on the Crusaders defence on Saturday

When Israel Folau’s contract was terminated, it seemed that Australian rugby had seen the last of a player soaring through the air to regain the ball from the kick-off, but it may be that Waratahs winger Mark Nawaqanitawase will ensure its survival.

The Waratahs were playing for pride late in the second half against the Crusaders on Saturday when Nawaqanitawase came in from his left wing and positioned himself to chase Will Harrison’s pinpoint drop-kicks, the kick-off travelling the minimum 10m before Nawaqanitawase twice leapt high to win the ball back.

“I’ve always been a big believer in utilising the players you have and their skill sets,” Waratahs coach Rob Penney said.

“That was one option because the Crusaders were vulnerable there. Next week the Blues (who will travel to Newcastle to play the Tahs on Saturday) may not be. But we put him there. It was something we practised.

“Marky Mark had a challenging first half but overcame that and had an outstanding second half as things got a bit better for us.

“His game improved on the back of that.”

Penney, indeed, had words of praise for all four of his former Junior Wallabies debutants — Nawaqanitawase, Harrison, Angus Bell and Carlo Tizzano.

“I thought it a really good first hitout for them,” he said.

“They would all be really proud of their efforts and I will give a bit of a special mention to ‘Harro’ given the position in which he plays and the expectation and all that around the 10. I’m really over the moon for him.”

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The 43-25 scoreline suggests that the Crusaders pretty much always had the match in hand — and so they did.

But after trailing 24-6 at halftime, the Tahs fought back and by the hour mark they were only six points down. Indeed, the overall scoreline was 19-all in the second half, a sign of some resilience in the NSW side.

But, as he did after the final trial against the Reds in Dalby, Penney had some concerns about his side’s defensive strength and its decision-making in attack.

A lot of the poor decision-making seemed to revolve around Kurtley Beale, but Penney would not hear of any criticism of his glamour fullback.

“My view on Kurtley is that he is world-class,” he said.

“I thought he played well on the weekend and I believe that he will continue to improve based on time in the saddle.

“He has come out of the World Cup and hasn’t played for 12 weeks. I think people expect a lot and I think he is a great asset to Australian rugby and obviously to us and he will just get better with every opportunity.”

Meanwhile, the Reds travelled to South Africa for their match against the Lions on Saturday without Test hooker Brandon Paenga-Amosa.

The hooker will have to consult the surgeon early this week after injuring his ankle early in the clash with the Brumbies in Canberra on Friday. The Reds already have a spare hooker on the road with them, with Sean Farrell expected to back up Alex Mafi this week, but will give consideration to flying over another.

The good news, however, is that rising lock Harry Hockings has recovered from his pre-season broken hand and will now come into consideration for the match against the Lions, a team the Reds haven’t beaten in Johannesburg since 2011, which was their title-winning season.

Recovery will play a big part this week, with Reds coach Brad Thorn refusing extra drinks breaks against the Brumbies, presumably because the hot conditions in Canberra were no fiercer than what the Queenslanders regularly deal with in training.

Brumbies coach Dan McKellar believed there was a player welfare issue at stake but said he could understand why Thorn had taken that stand.

“My preference was to have a drinks break but the rules state that it has to be agreed on by both teams — so away you go,” McKellar said.