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Barnes ... has the respect of teammates.
CONCEALED weapon Berrick Barnes is to be a shock starter at fly half in Queensland's bold plan to upset New South Wales at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night.
The veil was lifted on the Reds gamble last night when Barnes kicked off to start an opposed training session at Ballymore and ran the show in the playmaker role.
The team is not announced until today, but Barnes, 19, will be wearing the No.10 jersey in his Super 14 debut just five months after his switch from rugby league.
The Reds have clearly decided to buck the safety-first option of playing 10-season stalwart Elton Flatley at fly half to hit the Waratahs with a fresh, exciting and largely unseen package of skills.
Barnes has played six warm-up games to convince the Reds of his class, but all bar his 48 trial minutes against the Blues last month have been in Argentina and New Zealand.
Barnes has a slick kicking game, is improving his timing as a distributor in his new code, and has confidence. Those six games have also enabled him to earn invaluable respect from his teammates.
Barnes spoke impressively at the Reds season launch on Monday, when he suggested two years in the Brisbane Broncos system had steeled him beyond his years.
"League toughens you up physically and mentally.," he said. "They throw you in with the men from the start."
There's no doubt the buzz about the Barnes selection will intensify ticket sales.
Flatley slotted in at inside centre last night to give the Reds a dual playmaker look to their attacking moves, while Julian Huxley worked at outside centre.
Veteran second row Mark Connors (groin) did not train and remains in serious doubt.
The tight call on hooker seems to have been won by Sean Hardman, who drilled in the No.1 side last night ahead of Stephen Moore.
Lote Tuqiri, named at outside centre for NSW, meanwhile sent a scare through the Waratahs squad when he missed training because of illness.
Waratahs coach Ewen McKenzie was unfazed by Tuqiri's absence.
"I'm not going to panic," he said.
"I'm not worried about it at the moment.
Tim Donnelly won the contentious fly half job for NSW.
Australia forwards David Lyons and Dan Vickerman are back for NSW after long injury lay-offs.
Second row Will Caldwell was the only newcomer named in the Waratahs side, which contained five changes to the 2005 grand final team.
REDS (likely): C Latham; D Mitchell, J Huxley, E Flatley, T Atkinson; B Barnes, S Cordingley; J Roe (captain), D Croft, M Chapman; H McMeniman, M Connors; R Blake, S Hardman, G Holmes.
WARATAHS: S Norton-Knight; W Sailor, L Tuqiri, M Turinui, P Hewat; T Donnelly, C Whitaker (captain); D Lyons, P Waugh, R Elsom; D Vickerman, W Caldwell; A Baxter, A Freier, M Dunning. Replacements: T Polota-Nau, B Robinson, A Kanaar, W Palu, S Hoiles, S Berne, D Halangahu.
