Kurtley Beale says he was “disappointed” to be watching on when Australia last wore its Indigenous Test jersey but the Wallabies fullback says it has already proven to be a “galvanising” force for the team this weekend.
Beale was on the sideline when the Wallabies donned the jersey against England at Twickenham after he and Adam Ashley-Cooper were handed team-imposed stand downs after having guests in their team hotel rooms.
The situation meant Beale could only watch on as the Wallabies donned the jersey for the second time in history, after initially donning it in a 2017 Bledisloe win.
While Beale said it was disappointing not to play that day but he still felt an element of pride watching the Wallabies wear it against England.
"It was disappointing to miss out but I was a very proud teammate to see all the boys wearing the indigenous jersey at Twickenham,” he said.
"It should be no different tomorrow night, it's another special occasion.
"You can sense it's definitely a symbol that we're all behind.
"It's galvanising, bringing us together.”
Saturday will be the first time in World Cup history that the Wallabies will don an Indigenous strip, with the jersey having a predominantly green look in contrast to the gold versions worn in the past.
As Australia’s only current Indigenous Wallaby, Beale always has a somewhat elevated role in the lead-up to these matches and said he felt the team was
“As a proud Indigenous Australian I’m very excited to be wearing the Indigenous Wallabies playing strip tomorrow against Uruguay,” he said.
“We’ve got all the buy-in from the players and the staff and as a country it’s a true representation and acknowledgement to the First Nations people of our country so it’s going to be a special night for all involved and can’t want to be able to do that.”
Beale has been recalled to the starting team for this clash, starting at fullback with Dane Haylett-Petty moving to the wing.
While the Aussies will be short-priced favourites against rugby minnows Uruguay, wins in their final two matches are critical to assure them of a spot in the final eight.
Beale said he felt the team was in a good space to bounce back from their 29-25 loss to Wales last week.
“We'd like to play our natural game, an expansive one, ball in hand, smart rugby,” he said.
“That's something we are focussed on.
“And just correcting the wrongs that happened in the Wales game and I feel we are in a really good space to do that tomorrow night.”
Defence coach Nathan Grey, who played 35 Tests for the Wallabies, said the match would be a piece of history that the team would remember.
“On a bigger stage, wearing this jersey, the 5th of October, 2019, will go down in history in rugby as a game where the country got to wear a special jersey, signifying a really special moment,” he said.
“Being a former Wallaby myself, you create a lot of history as a player and this playing group tomorrow is going to create a bit of history, and that’s something that’s not lost on the group.”
The Wallabies take on Uruguay at Oita Stadium on Saturday October 5, kicking off at 2:15pm local, 3:15pm AEST, LIVE on Foxtel, Network Ten and via RUGBY.com.au RADIO, Rugby Xplorer and Amazon Alexa.
