Northern | US

Kurtley Beale bucks exodus trend to re-sign with Waratahs

Kurtley Beale. (Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images)
Comments
Comment

Wallabies star Kurtley Beale has his eye on a fourth World Cup after signing on with the NSW Waratahs for another Super Rugby season.

ADVERTISEMENT

The 30-year-old resisted the lure of lucrative overseas offers to re-sign with the Waratahs and is in sight of becoming their most capped player.

He will provide some stability and much-needed experience for NSW, who are yet to appoint a new coach, and for the Wallabies, with many stars opting to leave after this year’s World Cup in Japan.

That includes his Waratahs teammates Bernard Foley and Sekope Kepu as well as Test co-horts Will Genia, David Pocock and Samu Kerevi, who are all heading to play overseas after the tournament.

With 83 test caps under his belt Beale felt he still had another four more years of rugby in him, putting him in contention for the 2023 World Cup in France.

But he wants to win more silverware before then.

Beale said winning just one title (2014) as well as two Rugby Championships (2011 and 2015) from a professional career that began in 2007, was the prime motivation to continue playing Super Rugby.

“Obviously, World Cup years bring about change and we’re in an exciting period here at the Waratahs with some exciting young players and a new coach to be appointed,” Beale said.

ADVERTISEMENT

“To be able to play a part in that journey is exciting, and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can achieve in 2020.”

Beale has made 156 Super Rugby appearances, with 142 of them at NSW – just nine games shy of retired prop Benn Robinson’s record.

He made his Super Rugby debut in 2007 before spending two seasons with the Melbourne Rebels and a stint in the UK before returning to the Waratahs.

“I’ve spent the vast majority of my career here in NSW representing the Waratahs, it’s been an honour and something I’ll always be thankful for,” Beale said.

ADVERTISEMENT

“To represent your home state in a competition like Super Rugby, having made wonderful memories and friends is really special; I’m looking forward to building on that in 2020.”

AAP

In other news:

Video Spacer

Stream Nations Championship 2026 LIVE

Hemispheres collide in the new Nations Championship. Stream live, replays and highlights free on RugbyPass TV.

Watch on RPTV
Starts 4th July 2026 - USA only.
ADVERTISEMENT
Play Video
LIVE

{{item.title}}

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

0 Comments
Be the first to comment...

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Long Reads

Comments on RugbyPass

P
Phantom 34 minutes ago
Nations Championship: 'The data shows the north has finally caught up with the south'

Fact: the gap between the North and the South has narrowed considerably - that I get. However, determining that only selecting only Home grown players or playing in the home country is is the optimal strategy is a bit of a toss up and highly reliant on the economies of the home union. I do understand that England and to a lesser degree Ireland selects home based only. The top 14 is a massive threat to their domestic product. France would probably not be affected (the money is at home). Fiji, Argentina, Samoa, Italy and you could even argue Scotland have only benefitted from this. Their players either go overseas to learn at higher levels (Fiji, Samoa, Argentina) or players coming into their leagues to strengthen the home product and their National teams (Scotland, Italy, Japan).

South Africa used to limit its selection to the home based players, but the reality of a weak currency vs what players could earn oversees meant that you lost access to your best players at some stage of their careers, with very few exceptions. Kolbe left SA as he was considered too small for International Rugby (yes coaches/selectors view), but ironically in France he forced selectors to notice his endeavors and select him. He is only reaching 50 caps now despite being north of 30 - granted rotation and the odd injury also played a role, but for the most part it is having debuted or becoming a regular so late.



...

14 Go to comments
Close Panel
Close Panel

Edition & Time Zone

{{current.name}}
Set time zone automatically
{{selectedTimezoneTitle}} (auto)
Choose a different time zone
Close Panel

Editions

Close Panel

Change Time Zone

Copied to clipboard

Share Article close