You have to earn the right Kellaway not Beale the right choice at fullback

Andrew Kellaway has earned a chance to stake his claim at fullback, and Will Skelton and Rory Arnold must make their return to the Wallabies’ side against Scotland this weekend.

That’s the view of legendary Wallaby Tim Horan, who believes the time is not yet right to turn the No. 15 jersey over to promising winger Jordan Petaia, and that Kurtley Beale is better placed to return via the bench.

Andrew Kellaway.Credit:Getty

“The safe bet is Kellaway,” Horan told the Herald. ”The way the Wallabies can play these days with [attack coach] Scotty Wisemantel, those back three, it doesn’t really matter too much which numbers they have on their back. They vary it at set-piece, anyway.

“Jordy can stand at the 15 position, and Kellaway can stand on the wing. That’s probably your safer bet, at the moment. Jordy needs Test after Test, to play all Super Rugby next year.”

Kellaway has enjoyed one of the best rookie Wallabies seasons in recent memory, scoring eight tries in nine Tests from the wing and establishing himself as one of the first names on the team sheet.

But he was a schoolboy prodigy at fullback and has shown he is more than capable under the high ball - an attribute Wallabies selectors place the most emphasis on when selecting their No.15.

The 26-year-old will also be in his prime at the 2023 World Cup, while 32-year-old Beale will be nearer to the end of his career.

That’s a factor Horan believes must be taken into consideration when selecting the team for the final three Tests of the season.

“I think you have to have this view that in two year’s time, who’s going to be in your best XV at the World Cup?” Horan said. “Who potentially can be your 15 at the World Cup?

“I know they have three Tests, and they want to try and win eight in a row, if they can, but that’s how I’d be looking at it.”

Out wide, Horan would keep Petaia and Tom Wright on the wings, easing Izaia Perese into Test rugby via the bench.

Up front, the two time World Cup winning centre would throw Skelton and Arnold straight into the furnace against Scotland, with one eye on a clash against Eddie Jones’ England next weekend.

“You have to give them some game time. One of them has to start, the other can come off the bench,” Horan said. “You can’t be putting them in against England without any game time in the structure. Is it both on the bench, one starts, both start, both on the bench? I’m not sure. But they need game time.

“Arnold, probably before Skelton. I think (Skelton’s) more off the bench, and they’ll have to see how their fitness levels are.

“Where we’ve fallen down against England many times is lineout time. Our scrum has improved the last two years enormously, and we will potentially take it to England there. But lineouts, we have struggled, and that’s Rory’s strength.”

At five-eighth, Horan has no doubt James O’Connor will fill the hole left by Quade Cooper.

“Having played a couple of seasons in Europe, he understands that defensive patterns are right in your face,” Horan said.

“You have to adapt. If you get slow ball you have to sit back a bit more and kick a bit more, to get behind the defensive line. If you get quick ball, that’s when you flatten up. I think that’s good for James. I’m a big fan of his.”

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