Wallabies star Kurtley Beale's lawyer has indicated he will plead not guilty to sexually assaulting a woman in Sydney in late 2022 when the time comes.
Beale is accused of sexually assaulting a 28-year-old woman at a licensed premises near Bondi Beach on December 17, 2022.
The 34-year-old was charged in January with two counts of sexually touching another person without consent, inciting another to sexually touch without consent and sexual intercourse without consent.
Rugby Australia has suspended Beale from all forms of rugby until the conclusion of his legal proceedings.
Beale was not required to attend when his case was mentioned in Waverley Local Court on Wednesday. He remains on bail.
Outside court, his lawyer Lauren MacDougall said the case was still in its early stages and Beale was not yet required to enter a plea.
Asked how he intended to plead, she said he "definitely won't be pleading guilty" to the charges.
Beale, who had been capped 95 times by the Wallabies, was expected to be given a fresh lease of life under newly appointed national coach Eddie Jones.
He took part in a 44-man Wallabies training camp on the Gold Coast in January, returning to Australia ahead of the Super Rugby season for the NSW Waratahs after several years playing in France.
Beale, who is from NSW, has spent most of his more than a decade-long career with the Waratahs, aside from a brief spell with the Melbourne Rebels.
His case will return to Waverley Local Court on April 19.
Australian Associated Press
