Kurtley Beale facts for kids
Beale in August 2017
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| Date of birth | 6 January 1989 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | Blacktown, New South Wales, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 184 cm (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 90 kg (198 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | St Joseph's College, Hunters Hill | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kurtley James Beale (born 6 January 1989) is an Australian professional rugby union player. He has played over 90 times for the national team over ten years. Kurtley is of Aboriginal descent. He has had a long career in Super Rugby with the New South Wales Waratahs. He also played for the Melbourne Rebels and the Wasps club in England. Beale usually plays as a full-back or centre. He can also play as a fly-half or winger. In 2011, Beale won the John Eales Medal. This award is given to Australia's best rugby player of the year.
Contents
Early Life and School Rugby
Kurtley Beale was born in Blacktown, New South Wales. He grew up in Mount Druitt in Western Sydney. When he was young, Kurtley played junior rugby league for the Western City Tigers. Later, he switched to rugby union.
He went to St Joseph's College, Hunters Hill ("Joeys"). He played for the school's top team in his last three years. From 2004 to 2006, Beale was chosen for the New South Wales and Australian Schoolboys rugby teams. In 2006, he was captain for both the Joeys team and the Australian Schoolboys. He even trained with the NSW Waratahs from age 15. He signed with the Waratahs when he was only 16. At 17, he was invited to his first Wallabies training camp.
Kurtley Beale's Rugby Career
Beale first played senior rugby for the Northern Suburbs club. In 2007, he became the main fly-half for the Western Sydney Rams. He played every game that season. The Rams finished first in the regular season. Kurtley was one of the top try scorers and helped set up many tries. He won the 2007 player of the tournament award for the ARC.
In June 2013, Beale played for Randwick. He had also played for Randwick in 2010.
Playing for the New South Wales Waratahs
First Years: 2007–2011
Beale played his first senior game for New South Wales in January 2007. It was a trial game against the ACT in Wollongong. He came off the bench and scored a memorable try. He chipped the ball over a player and ran past the full-back to score. NSW won the game 12–0. Two weeks later, he helped set up the winning try against the Crusaders.
His coach, Ewen McKenzie, wanted to bring Beale into the team slowly. But just two weeks later, Beale started his first game as fly-half against the Sharks in South Africa. The Waratahs lost 22–9. In his next start, Beale scored another amazing try. He chipped the ball over the first line of defence and took it from the full-back to score.
Beale became the Waratahs' first-choice fly-half for the 2008 Super 14 season. He also took over goal-kicking duties. For the 2010 season, Beale moved to full-back.
Returning to the Waratahs: 2014–2016 and 2017–2020
After two seasons with the Melbourne Rebels, Beale signed a one-year deal to return to the Waratahs in 2014. He played as an inside centre in every game during the 2014 Super Rugby season. His teamwork with Israel Folau (full-back), Adam Ashley-Cooper (outside centre), and Bernard Foley (fly-half) was key to the team's success. In the final against the Crusaders, he helped set up two tries for Adam Ashley-Cooper. This helped the Waratahs win 33–32 and secure the Super Rugby title.
Third Time with the Waratahs: 2022–2023
In February 2022, Rugby Australia confirmed that Beale would return to the New South Wales Waratahs. This happened after he finished playing for Racing 92 in Paris during the 2021–22 Top 14 season. This move allowed Beale to aim for a fourth World Cup with Australia. He returned to play for the Waratahs starting in the 2023 Super Rugby Pacific season.
Playing for the Melbourne Rebels: 2012–2013
Beale signed a two-year deal to play for the Melbourne Rebels starting in 2012. His teammates included other national players like James O'Connor and Nick Phipps. He started the 2012 season at full-back. He then switched to fly-half when Danny Cipriani left for England. With Beale's help, the Rebels played one of their best games, a close loss to the Bulls. The next week, the Rebels beat the strong Crusaders. Beale kicked two conversions and three penalties in that game. The Rebels then narrowly beat the Force in Perth, with Beale still playing fly-half.
Rod Macqueen, a former Rebels coach, said that Beale at number 10 brought something special to the team. He believed that Beale, along with James O'Connor at inside centre, helped shape the team's play on the field.
Playing for Wasps: 2016–2017
In May 2016, Beale agreed to join the English club Wasps RFC. He signed a one-year contract with an option to extend it. He made his Wasps debut in the European Champions Cup against Connacht. He scored a try in that game. During his time at Wasps, he played in 12 Aviva Premiership games, scoring 4 tries. He also played in 5 European Champions Cup games, scoring 1 try. He missed the 2016/17 Premiership final due to an injury in the semi-final against Leicester Tigers.
Playing for Racing 92: 2020–2022
Beale joined the Top 14 rugby team, Racing 92, from the Waratahs. He signed a two-year deal starting from the 2020–21 season. Beale played his first game for Racing against Lyon on 6 September 2020. Racing won the match 23–27. In his third game for Racing, he came on as a substitute in the 2020 European Rugby Champions Cup Final against the Exeter Chiefs. Racing lost the close game 31–27.
Overall, Beale was important for Racing in his first season. He played twenty-five matches and scored thirty-eight points (seven tries, one penalty goal). He mostly played at full-back.
In his second season for Racing (2021–2022), Beale continued to contribute. In round one of the 2021–22 European Rugby Champions Cup, he made a quick run and pass that led to a try. He also had a try assist, helping Racing win 14–45 against Northampton Saints.
Playing for Western Force: 2024
After being out of the game since returning to Australia in 2023, Beale signed with the Perth-based Super Rugby team, the Western Force. He joined in April 2024 as an injury replacement player until the end of the 2024 season. There was some talk about Beale possibly switching to the National Rugby League (NRL).
International Rugby Career
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Early International Years: 2007–2011
Beale made his Australia A debut in the 2007 Pacific Nations Cup. He scored his first try in a 27–15 win against Samoa. Soon after, Beale almost made the 2007 Rugby World Cup team.
Beale made his first test match appearance on the 2009 Spring Tour. He played on the wing as a substitute in Australia's 34–12 win over Wales. He also played in some mid-week matches on the tour as a fly-half.
2010 was a big year for Beale in his international career. He started the test season by scoring two tries against Fiji. He finished the year with seven tries from 12 test matches.
In 2011, Beale won the John Eales Medal, which is given to Australia's best rugby player of the year. He was also nominated for the IRB International Player of the Year Award. He was part of the Australian squad for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. He was expected to be the starting full-back when he was fit. However, he missed the Wallabies' semi-final against the All Blacks due to a hamstring injury.
Later International Career: 2012–2019
- Further information: 2015 World Cup and Final
Beale played full-back for the third test against Wales in Sydney in 2012. He then played in three tests of the 2012 Rugby Championship. These were against the All Blacks and the Springboks. After some games at full-back, he was a substitute for the game against Argentina.
When Quade Cooper got a knee injury, coach Robbie Deans moved Beale from full-back to fly-half. He played fly-half in the Wallabies' loss to the Springboks. He was also selected at fly-half against Argentina, where he helped set up a try for Digby Ioane. Beale also played fly-half in the 18-all draw against the All Blacks. He successfully kicked two penalty goals in that game.
On the 2012 Spring Tour, he played fly-half in all of the Wallabies' games. In the last match of the tour against Wales, Beale kicked three penalty goals and scored the winning try.
In 2013, Beale was chosen to play for Australia against the British & Irish Lions. In the first test, Beale missed a penalty kick that would have won the game for the Wallabies. The Lions won 23–21. He played full-back in the last two tests of the Lions series, which the Wallabies lost 2–1. After the series, he had shoulder surgery and was out for the rest of the year.
In 2014, Beale played in all three test matches against France. He came off the bench for the Wallabies. He scored a try in the first match and helped set up a try for Michael Hooper in the third test. Beale's good season with the Waratahs earned him the starting No. 10 role for the Wallabies. This was for the first two Bledisloe Cup matches against New Zealand. After a draw and a loss to the All Blacks, Beale was a substitute for the rest of the Rugby Championship. His Waratahs teammate, Foley, took over the No. 10 role.
Beale played at the 2015 Rugby World Cup. He was very important in Australia's journey to the final. The Wallabies made it all the way to the final but lost to New Zealand 32–17. In 2016, Beale did not play against England. This was because he was playing for Wasps and did not meet the requirements to be chosen from overseas.
Beale returned to play for the Wallabies in 2017 after re-signing with the Waratahs. Kurtley made his comeback against Japan in a 63–30 win. He also helped extend the Wallabies' winning streak against Wales. However, they lost to England and Scotland.
He then played inside centre against Ireland in 2018. Australia lost the Bledisloe Cup to the All Blacks for the 16th year in a row.
Kurtley was chosen for the 2019 Rugby World Cup. The Wallabies lost in the quarter-final against England. Beale then signed with Racing 92 in the Top 14, leaving Super Rugby.
Return to Test Rugby: 2020–2021
Beale played consistently for Racing 92. He was not chosen for the Wallabies in 2020. However, in 2021, due to an injury to Reece Hodge, Beale was called back to the Wallabies. He was named as a substitute against Scotland.
Personal Life
Indigenous Heritage
Kurtley Beale identifies as Aboriginal. He was born and raised in Dharug country. His mother is from the Kamilaroi nation of New South Wales. Beale grew up playing rugby league. He looked up to Indigenous players like Greg Inglis and Johnathan Thurston. He has talked about how rugby union is different from the NRL and AFL. These sports have more Indigenous players.
Beale has said he needed to work to connect with his heritage. He found it hard to trace his family tree and find elders. However, a visit to the Tiwi Islands in 2011 was important for him. He went there to support a project by former Australian cricketer Matthew Hayden. Beale described this visit as an "awakening" to learn more about his heritage. Since then, Beale has said he is a "proud Indigenous man."
In 2017, Beale showed the Wallabies' first Indigenous jersey. This made rugby union the first sport in Australia to have an Indigenous jersey at the national level. He also introduced the Waratahs' Indigenous jersey in 2019. Beale has also said that returning to Australian rugby was partly because he wanted to be a role model for Indigenous children.
Family Life
Kurtley Beale married his long-time partner, Maddi Bloomberg, in 2020.
See also
In Spanish: Kurtley Beale para niños
