Ben Lucas emerges as the other half
Wayne Smith | May 15, 2008 Ben Lucas emerges as the other half | The Australian


HAVING spent six years becoming an overnight sensation, Luke Burgess suddenly finds his ascension to George Gregan's throne as the Test halfback being challenged by another sensational No9 barely six games in the making.

That's how many starts Ben Lucas has had for Queensland and while it seems preposterous to suggest he might be named in front of Burgess when the first Wallabies side of the Robbie Deans era is announced on June 2, many a significant observer will be paying close attention to their clash in Saturday's Waratahs-Reds showdown at Suncorp Stadium.

While the selectors are also likely to have the combative Brett Sheehan in their mix for the squad, there is no disputing the fact that Burgess and Lucas have been the two halfbacks making the loudest statements with their performances in this strangely Gregan-less season.

Yet a mere two months ago Burgess, 24, was stuck in Sydney club football, third in line in the Waratahs' squad behind Sheehan and Josh Valentine. It was a position in the pecking order he was becoming all too familiar with. After signing with the Brumbies in 2003 as an understudy to Gregan, he found himself squeezed out of the ACT roster last year when Josh Holmes and Nick Haydon were recruited to complement Patrick Phibbs. For an awkward month or so, it seemed Burgess's professional career was over but in May the Waratahs threw him a lifeline.

Up at the Reds, Lucas, 20, was living on the fringes of the Super 14 squad, barely considered a halfback at all. Until last year, he had played virtually all of his rugby at five-eighth and indeed was the "unknown" that Wallabies coach John Connolly chanced upon while trawling for a back-up to Steve Larkham in the World Cup squad.

After toying with the radical idea of plucking the Sunnybank No10 from obscurity, Connolly settled instead on Berrick Barnes, later to emerge as one of the heroes of the doomed Cup campaign. At the time it seemed Lucas had used up his 15-minute quota of fame.

All that changed when Sam Cordingley, the early frontrunner to succeed Gregan in the Test side, and his Queensland understudy Will Genia both succumbed to injury. Lucas, still in the preliminary stages of converting himself into a halfback at the request of Reds coach Phil Mooney, found himself marking Springboks star Ruan Pienaar in his starting debut against the Sharks in Durban.

It was a daring move by Mooney but one that paid off spectacularly right from the start and continues to do so.

"I've always said you can teach a player the mechanics of a position but you can't teach them game sense, and Ben's got that," Mooney said yesterday.

Burgess agrees, having played opposite Lucas in Australian Rugby Championship matches but more importantly alongside him in the Australian sevens team.

"He's got great footwork, a fast, accurate pass and he reads the game so well," the Waratahs halfback said.

Lucas is every bit as respectful of Burgess's ability. "He's definitely very competitive and energetic on the field. He's always looking for opportunities," he said.

It has been Burgess's eye for an opening and his speed to take it that has made him such a welcome addition to the Waratahs side since his first run-on start against the Blues - that and his "out there" relaxed manner. "Muhammad Ali once said you can't build speed from tension - and that's my whole philosophy of life," Burgess said.

Meanwhile, Reds winger Brando Va'alu is in serious doubt for Saturday's match after rolling an ankle at training last night at Ballymore. He landed awkwardly after a mid-air collision with Caleb Brown, the former Australian under-21 speedster who now stands to take his starting spot.