Waratahs lock away Sid the Kid as Lomax debut confirmed
The Waratahs have moved quickly to lock away rookie superstar Sid Harvey after his eye-catching arrival in Super Rugby, extending the 20-year-old for another two seasons at the franchise.
The news came as the Western Force confirmed NRL convert Zac Lomax will make his Super Rugby debut off the bench in Brisbane on Saturday, and potentially square off with 19-year-old Reds prodigy Treyvon Pritchard, who has been named to start.
Harvey has been a revelation for the Waratahs since debuting off the bench in round four, and then being elevated to wing and starting fullback for the last three games.
Showing the skill and poise of a far more experienced player, Harvey has been assured for the Tahs and even played a critical role in NSW beating the Brumbies in Canberra last weekend with a faultless goal-kicking performance. Harvey iced three penalty goals in the last 15 minutes to give the Waratahs a winning lead.
NSW coach Dan McKellar is a huge fan of Harvey, and has repeatedly praised him as having a “a touch of class, on and off the field”.
Harvey, who also had a stint with the Aussie sevens team as a colt last year, was only promoted out of the Waratahs academy to the full-time squad this season, on a one-year deal. But Tahs bosses moved quickly to extend his contract and the Narrabri youngster has re-signed until the end of 2028 season, according to informed sources not authorised to comment.
Harvey will get his first taste of playing in New Zealand this weekend after being named at fullback in a reshuffled Waratahs backline to meet the Chiefs in Hamilton.
McKellar has given Teddy Wilson a rare start at No.9, and rotated Wallabies star Jake Gordon onto the bench. With Lawson Creighton injured, Triston Reilly has returned to the No.13 and Jack Bowen has come onto the bench for his first potential minutes this year.
“Jake’s been excellent for us, and Ted’s been really good off the bench. So, yeah, we’ve got two quality nines,” McKellar said.“We are making sure that we’re not burning the candle at both ends with Jake, but also at the same time, making sure that we’re developing Teddy. We feel that Teddy, as he was in 2025, will do a good job for us starting.”
McKellar said Wilson’s running game and defence were key strengths, and praised the development of his “core skills”.
McKellar boasts an impressive record against the Chiefs, with four wins from six games as head coach – and two from four in Hamilton. The Tahs beat the Chiefs in Sydney last year by kicking well and putting the Kiwis under intense defensive pressure.
“You’ve got to defend well and reduce their turnover opportunity,” McKellar said.
“And understand that they’ll hurt you. They did that against the Crusaders. I think the Crusaders had a chance to pin them on their try line and clocked off on the inside. And all of a sudden you’re underneath the sticks. You just cannot let that happen.
“So you’ve got to defend really well. And understand that if you do defend well because of how they play, you’ll get opportunity and attack. But if you’re falling off tackles and get lazy on the inside, then they’ll quickly run up a score.”
Meanwhile, Force coach Simon Cron said he’s confident Lomax is ready for his Super Rugby debut after only joining the club three weeks ago. Lomax was named on the bench, and will likely get time on the field as a wing in the last quarter.
“He’s a natural athlete. Big, strong, fast, powerful,” Cron said.
“We’ve done a bit of work with him since he got here and he’s very confident that he’s ready. We’re in a position now where I think it’s a great opportunity for him to play. He’s coming off the bench, so it gives him a chance to work his way into the game. But yeah, he’s a great player and he’s ready to go.
“The finer arts will be a little while coming, but I think he’s good enough to handle it.”
The Reds have named Carter Gordon, Josh Flook and Kalani Thomas to return in their backline, and coach Les Kiss has also thrown Pritchard a debut start. The teenager only left school last year and has played four games off the bench for Queensland this year.
Iain Payten is a senior sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.