Ex-NSW Waratah Peter Hewat has emerged as the Brumbies’ likely saviour at five-eighth, with the record-holding point-scorer close to inking a deal with the ACT Super Rugby franchise.
The Brumbies have been scrambling for options at No.10 since Christian Lealiifano broke his ankle last Saturday, joining first-choice five-eighth Matt Toomua on the sidelines for the rest of the season.
The dilemma pushed coach Jake White into overdrive thinking of possible solutions, with approaches made to Matt Giteau in France and even a surprise appeal to backs’ coach and former Wallaby great Stephen Larkham to come out of retirement.
But it appears 34-year-old Hewat, widely considered one of the best Super players to never don an Australia jersey, is the man to solve the Brumbies’ woes – and could potentially line-up as soon as next week.
His agent Ben Williams said on Friday a deal was on the verge of being finalised.
“It’s obviously a delicate matter because Peter’s contracted at Suntory in Japan,” the International Athlete Group director told AAP.
“But Suntory are a very professional club and they’re always quite interested in seeing their players have great experiences on and off the field, so they’ve been open minded.
“We’re feeling positive about it all.”
Hewat, who played just three seasons of Super Rugby, but remains the second highest point-scorer in the Waratahs’ history, left Australia in 2007 to play for London Irish, before making the move to Suntory three years later.
Williams said Hewat was keen to play again in Australia, where he is currently on holiday.
With the Australian Rugby Union having already given its blessing, the deal can go ahead once the Brumbies secure insurance for Hewat and Suntory signs off.
“He’s excited,” Williams said of Hewat’s potential return.
“He’s been away for five years … but it’s just a great opportunity to test himself in the best comp in the world again.”
With Hewat on board, White will have three backs to experiment with against the Hurricanes in Wellington next Friday, with Robbie Coleman and Zack Holmes both potential starters at five-eighth.
While the Larkham option became a major talking point, the 37-year-old is understood to have backed his young charges – Coleman and Holmes – to fill the gap rather than launch a comeback.
Meanwhile, Toulon told the Brumbies they were reluctant to release Giteau, citing a lack of rest between fixtures.