Wallabies outside back Andrew Kellaway could see the lighter side of his accidental KO of Waratahs teammate Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii.
“It was nice to get in there and remind the big fella that I've still got a little bit of hardness about me, despite everybody's opinion,” he said and laughed.
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Kellaway feared he would go 'viral' for the wrong reasons back in May after a mid-game collision with Suaalii left the young superstar with a broken jaw, ruling him out for the remaining Super Rugby Pacific season.
“Nobody wants to crash the Ferrari,” Kellaway said to the media.
“I was worried I was going to go viral as a guy who damaged Joseph before the Lions series.
“He looks all right down there. He's doing a lot of talking, which is a good sign but obviously extremely unfortunate and just (the) nature of the game.”
Kellaway is hopeful to join Suaalii in the Wallabies but was honest about his own form in 2025.
“Probably not the best year but that stuff happens and you've got to get on with it,” Kellaway said.
“It's the beauty of the game, right? It's completely out of my control whether I get picked or not. But what I do know is that Joe [Schmidt] is a good coach and he'll pick the best team he can and if that's not me, it's not me.”
It reflects the growing competitiveness in the back three, with Kellaway battling Tom Wright, Filipo Daugunu, Max Jorgensen, Harry Potter and Dylan Pietsch amongst others.
“I think competitiveness always helps naturally and talking about the fact that it's more competitive is great for the game,” Kellaway said.
“We can talk about who's going to be in what position and we can all speculate and everyone can have a different opinion.
“I think that's a great thing and to be honest, probably something we've not had a lot of for a little while. I think it's great for the game that we're talking about who should be where and there's a little bit of doubt about half the rugby-supporting population want player X and the other half want player Y.
“As far as we're concerned, you don't really read too much into it but I think as far as the spectacle goes and for the game, it's a good thing.”
