Probably so, but it is in NRL contract that you have to be available for International selection barring injury, or if you have been given permission to not play, and your club has to let the player play.
So technically it could be a legal thing, PVL has even entered the discussion. I'll link it for you.
ARL Commission boss Peter V’landys has expressed his disappointment in Kalyn Ponga and will launch an investigation into the Newcastle champion’s decision to stand down from Australian selection.
V’landys has been left stunned by
Ponga’s move to rule himself out of the upcoming Pacific Championships in a move that could have ramifications for the appetite of NRL stars to play international football.
The Dally M sensation was on the brink of a maiden green-and-gold jersey, with Ponga having been selected in a preliminary Australian squad for Tests against Tonga and New Zealand in October.
It is understood the Knights were contacted on Tuesday morning about Ponga’s selection in that squad, prompting the Newcastle skipper to release a statement explaining his decision to reject an Australian jumper.
V’landys, as ARLC chair, rubberstamps key decisions made on the national side and he won’t stand for NRL players potentially undermining the prestige of representing one of Australia’s most iconic sporting teams.
“It’s quite surprising and disappointing that anyone would contemplate not taking that honour of representing your country,” V’landys said of Ponga’s stance.
Asked if he will force Ponga to play for Australia in future, he added: “Well, I don’t want to use the word force, but I’m going to investigate this one, put it that way.
“For me, what’s more disappointing is when I was a kid, my dream was to play for Australia, to represent your country.
“As a sportsperson, that should be your ambition in any sport – to represent your country.
“That’s what this point is for me.
“The thing that hurts me the most is that you don’t want to represent your country and wear the green and gold.
“Kids and people would dream to represent their country in anything.”
Australia coach Mal Meninga is determined to select players totally committed to the Kangaroos.
The issue first reached a flashpoint at the 2017 World Cup when then Sharks prop Andrew Fifita sensationally rejected Australian selection to represent Tonga.
The NRL’s club licensing agreements make it clear that the 17 franchises must make their players available for representative selection.
Those clauses are generally overlooked where there is a legitimate reason for a player withdrawing from representative football such as injury or retirement after long service for state or country.
Ponga adopted a similar stance last year when he withdrew from Queensland Origin calculations.
On that occasion, he was making his comeback from a long stint on the sidelines following a series of concussions and it was accepted by Maroons coach Billy Slater as a legitimate explanation.
In this instance, V’landys will take a deeper look at his reasoning given Ponga’s Knights contract states that a player must make himself available for representative football.
V’landys said Ponga and other NRL players are bound by contracting rules and cannot simply stand down of their volition because they don’t feel like playing for Australia.
“The rules are pretty descriptive now,” V’landys said.
“There’s contractual obligations and club license obligations.
“When you sign a player contract, you make yourself available to play for your country – and in the club licence, the club has to release a player for representative duties.
“So it’s already covered off.
“What players have to understand, the pinnacle of our game is to wear the green and gold of Australia.
“To represent your country, there’s no greater honour than to represent Australia and put that green and gold on.
“Mal Meninga has done a great job in highlighting to all the players how honoured they should be to wear the green and gold of Australia.”
Ponga insists he has great respect for the Australia jumper, but wants to hit the ground running in pre-season in his quest to skipper Newcastle to a premiership.
“I want to win a comp, for me anything short of that, isn’t success,” Ponga said.
“My focus has never shifted from wanting to win a premiership with the Knights, that has been my goal since I joined the club in 2018 and continues to be my focus.
“When I’m done, I want to look back at my career with a positive reflection, including people saying he was a great signing and represented our community to the best of his ability.
“For now, I don’t feel like I have earned that yet, that’s why I have made this decision and will work hard every day to chase those goals.”
Kangaroos coach Meninga told this masthead last month that he wanted players passionate about the green-and-gold jumper after seeing NSW Origin stars Jarome Luai and Brian To’o pledge their allegiance to Samoa.
“Players are making some really good decisions about who they want to play with,” Meninga said.
“I want to pick players for Australia that want to put that Kangaroo jersey on.
“The pinnacle of any game is to pull on your country’s jersey.
“People assume that Origin is the benchmark for players, but anyone who loves their country aspires to go one step further than that.
“Representing your country is your greatest personal reward and it doesn’t get any bigger than pulling on a Kangaroos jersey.”
‘Hurt’ Peter V’landys weighs in on Kalyn Ponga’s Australia snub
