Wallabies star Curtley Beale faces court accused of rape in Bondi pub toilet where he was banned from playing all forms of rugby
Bale, 34, has entered formal pleas to three charges and will stand trial in January 2024 for alleged sexual assault ‘I was falsely accused’
Suspended rugby star Kurtley Beale will stand trial accused of sexually assaulting a woman after an alleged incident at a Sydney pub in January.
The 34-year-old formally pleaded not guilty to one count of sexual intercourse without consent and two counts of sexual touching when he appeared in Downing Center District Court on Friday.
Another charge of soliciting another to sexually touch the alleged victim was withdrawn in June.
Beale, who is on bail, is accused of sexually assaulting the 28-year-old woman at the Beach Road Hotel near Bondi Beach late on December 17 last year and early the next morning.
An interim arrest warrant against Bill is expected to come back before the court after the trial.
Beale (pictured outside a court in Sydney on Friday) has pleaded not guilty to one count of having sex without consent and two counts of sexual touching.
He did not comment outside court on Friday, but told the media in June that he was devastated by the allegations.
‘I am not guilty. The allegation against me has been false (brought) and the truth will come out,’ he said.
The talented Waratahs and Wallabies playmaker has 95 Australian caps.
He won the John Eales Medal for the best player in 2011.
Rugby Australia suspended Beale from all forms of rugby in January, a week after he attended a 44-man Wallabies training camp due to legal proceedings.
The allegations saw the rugby star suspended from all forms of sport, ruining his chances of representing his country at the World Cup later this year.
Beale was expected to be given new life under reappointed Wallabies coach Eddie Jones after being left out of Dave Rennie’s squad for the spring tour of Europe.
Biel returned to Australia last year after a spell at French club Racing 92 and he and wife Maddie celebrated the birth of their first son in October.
Jones has long spoken in glowing terms of veterans’ unique gifts on the field.
“Kartley is the most amazingly gifted player,” he said.
‘He does things that other players wouldn’t even dream of.’
He will next appear in court on Dec. 1 before his trial on Jan. 15, 2024.