Kurtley Beale was quick to point out “age is just a number” on Thursday as he was unveiled as a new Western Force player.
The 95-cap Wallabies utility back fronted the Perth media on Thursday afternoon, having signed on with the Force on an injury cover contract for the rest of the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season.
The deal comes after Beale spent a year out of the game in 2023, before putting together some strong performances with Randwick in the Shute Shield and Australian Club Championship over the past two months.
Beale, who has played for Australia at three World Cups and previously won the John Eales medal, harbours further Wallabies ambitions and was confident he has plenty to offer the Force.
“Age is just a number,” Beale told reporters. “I still feel like I’ve got a lot to add to the game.
“I had a year off last year. It was a great opportunity to focus on my physical wellbeing, my mental wellbeing. I’ve trained all that time for this moment now. I’m very thankful for the opportunity here.
“I’m just very excited for the challenge ahead… especially coming here to the Western Force, it’s quite a young group.
“Young guys aspiring to be rugby players over here don’t really get that much opportunity to interact with international players. Part of my job being here is to help those young guys coming through. I’m really excited about that.
“I’ve always respected how the Force have played their rugby. It’s a chance to help the team push on to the finals.
“I know it’s not the start the boys wanted, but after a bye and reset, no doubt we’ll be focusing on pushing for that finals series later in the season.”
The 35-year-old, who has replaced injured winger/full-back Harry Potter in the squad, was optimistic that moving away from Sydney to Perth with his pregnant wife Maddie and their 18-month-old boy Kurtley will bring the best out of him too.
“Being away from home here in Perth, you’re able to just focus on yourself and your family and the important things in life,” he said.
“Right now, the priorities are family and rugby. Two passions of mine, to be able to move forward after last year at a great club like the Force with a great team and some special men around, I’m hoping I can go back to the level of playing that I’m used to and hopefully keep growing as a player.
“I think there’s a lot to be able to do that. No doubt I’ll be pushing really hard to do that.”
Beale admitted his working relationship with head coach Simon Cron – whom he knows from their time together at the NSW Waratahs – played a part in the move.
“I just had a meeting with him then. I just said ‘mate, honesty is the best thing’. That’s where I get a lot of my growth. We have that really good relationship and bond to get the best out of each other. We’ve all got that common focus and common goal to progress further and start winning games. We’ve got four games left here in Perth and we want to finish really strong.”
Beale first wants to break into the Force line-up and play well, but has a view on returning to the Wallabies fold and revealed he had spoken to new Australia head coach Joe Schmidt.
“I had one brief chat. He’s got a busy job at the moment,” Beale said about Schmidt.
“He just wanted to see me playing some rugby. I did a bit of that through the Shute Shield and now taking it to the next level here at the Western Force.
“Hopefully I’ll be able to put in some consistent performances for the selectors to look at.”
Beale spent time training with teammates on Friday in a top-up session, before the whole squad resumes on Monday following the mid-season bye.
The Force are next in action in Round 9 against the Crusaders on Saturday 20 April from 5:35pm WST at HBF Park. Tickets are available via Ticketmaster.
