Waratahs to lose Beale to Wasps

Australian papers are reporting that Wallabies back Kurtley Beale is considering a massive deal to play in England but he may have already signed.

Sources in England however say that Beale signed the deal that will put him in the top three in highest paid players last week.

Australian newspapers say that Beale is close to signing the deal which is worth Aus$2.7 million (US$2.0 million) and starts after the Super Rugby season.

The deal will re-unite Beale with his former Rebels team-mate Danny Cipriani who has also agreed to join Wasps next season.

The deal will make Beale the highest-paid player in the English Premiership and as he has already played 60 Tests for Australia he is eligible to continue playing for the Wallabies.

“We want our best players playing in our competition and for the Waratahs, that’s going to be an ongoing problem,” Waratahs coach Daryl Gibson told the Sydney Morning Herald.

“The 60-game threshold will hurt the Waratahs more than it will hurt Australia because Kurtley is still available to Australia, he won’t be available to the Waratahs.”

Gibson, who took over from Wallabies coach Michael Cheika at the Waratahs, said it could become “the norm” for Australia’s best players to be poached for large sums of money.

“I think rich European clubs coming here and picking off our biggest talent, it’s going to probably become more the norm than not,” he said.

“I don’t think we’re quite at that tipping point yet, but certainly it’s going to be a big issue for Australian rugby.”