Semi Radradra wants to play for Australia

[thorson1987]

Australia to a simply say if you cant play for a state of Australia you cant represent the Kangaroos - based upon SOO qualification process

Semi fails this test

He played the Pacific Cup last year also

We shouldnt allow players to swap nations without a 2y waiting period except if you swap from the big 3 to a Tier 2 nation

So if (and it is a big if) a local boy from Melbourne who is Australian gets to the point you are saying he can't play for Australia because he is ineligible for SOO?

 

[flamin]

Cricket, union, netball etc. have all gone through the hard times of uneven comps and cricket scores.

Yes those were dark times for cricket with all those cricket scores being racked up... :sarcasm:

 

[hutch]

Semis manager would be getting in his ear convincing him of all the dollars he missing out on. It is so important that these type of players play for their nations. Fiji should have guaranteed test matches and tournaments every year. Players like radradra could be paid some extra NRL cash to be the ambassador of rugby league in the NRL and pacific.

 

[siv]

So if (and it is a big if) a local boy from Melbourne who is Australian gets to the point you are saying he can't play for Australia because he is ineligible for SOO?

He plays for the Victorian state team in the affiliated states

Just like Brett Lawrence should be

 

[Foreign Legion]

Why cant they just have polynesian V Melinisan SOO and winner plays nsw or qld problem solved

 

[roughyedspud]

cos its a shit idea..


just open up origin to 2nd tier nation players...and it is only the odd player...barely 2-3 per series...if that..that has no impact on australia what so ever...but more often than not..its the best player from fiji,tonga,samoa etc...that has to dump their nation to play a state game...and then miss out of playing for a 2nd tier nation.........its effing ridiculous

 

[The Great Dane]

cos its a shit idea..


just open up origin to 2nd tier nation players...and it is only the odd player...barely 2-3 per series...if that..that has no impact on australia what so ever...but more often than not..its the best player from fiji,tonga,samoa etc...that has to dump their nation to play a state game...and then miss out of playing for a 2nd tier nation.........its effing ridiculous

Or we could just keep things as they are and not screw the game out of a huge slice of it's income.

We all know that this is a slippery slope, if the NRL/ARLC allow players eligible for second tier nations to play both SOO and for second tier nations that it will only be a matter of time before people are whinging that it's unfair that Sam Burgess can't have his cake and eat it too as well.

At the end of the day the problem isn't with the SOO eligibility rules it's with the international eligibility rules, they are just far to loose.
Like every other code we're never going to find the perfect set of international eligibility rules, but I think we can alter them to the point that 90% of players don't have a choice as the rules have already elected a nation for them just by their mere family and personal history.

I'd start with these rules and then grow where the needs be.

1. If you were born in that country you are eligible to play for that country.

2. If your parent/s were born in that country you are eligible to play for that country.

3. If you have lived in that country for more than 10 years then you are eligible to play for that country.

4. Once you have declared for a country (at any stage in your RL career) then you cannot switch countries, unless you are deemed eligible to switch to the country of your choice by an independent committee appointed by the RLIF and sit out of the international circuit for a minimum of 2 years.

5. You can only apply to change countries once in your career, and only appeal the committees decision once.

6. If you represent a country in any other sport that country is considered to be the country you have declared for in RL.

That'd get rid of heaps of the flip flopping and players playing for their grandparents country that they can't even point to on a map let alone have ever been to, but a comprehensive international calender where every country plays regular games in the off season would have to be made and enforced for this set of rules to work

 

[Scubby]

Or we could just keep things as they are and not screw the game out of a huge slice of it's income.

We all know that this is a slippery slope, if the NRL/ARLC allow players eligible for second tier nations to play both SOO and for second tier nations that it will only be a matter of time before people are whinging that it's unfair that Sam Burgess can't have his cake and eat it too as well.

At the end of the day the problem isn't with the SOO eligibility rules it's with the international eligibility rules, they are just far to loose.
Like every other code we're never going to find the perfect set of international eligibility rules, but I think we can alter them to the point that 90% of players don't have a choice as the rules have already elected a nation for them just by their mere family and personal history.

I'd start with these rules and then grow where the needs be.

1. If you were born in that country you are eligible to play for that country.

2. If your parent/s were born in that country you are eligible to play for that country.

3. If you have lived in that country for more than 10 years then you are eligible to play for that country.

4. Once you have declared for a country (at any stage in your RL career) then you cannot switch countries, unless you are deemed eligible to switch to the country of your choice by an independent committee appointed by the RLIF and sit out of the international circuit for a minimum of 2 years.

5. You can only apply to change countries once in your career, and only appeal the committees decision once.

6. If you represent a country in any other sport that country is considered to be the country you have declared for in RL.

That'd get rid of heaps of the flip flopping and players playing for their grandparents country that they can't even point to on a map let alone have ever been to, but a comprehensive international calender where every country plays regular games in the off season would have to be made and enforced for this set of rules to work

I think we are only talking about players who qualify currently. For example, James Segeyaro or David Maed could play for the state as they were here when they were under 16 and played their first RL in an Origin state but are both obviously Papuans. Mead has dumped PNG to play City-Country FFS he has no hope in hell of ever making Origin. Did anyone really care when Adrian Lam played for Qld?

 

[roughyedspud]

I see semi is basically trying to blackmail the sport....f**k of toi union you grub

 

[thorson1987]

He plays for the Victorian state team in the affiliated states

Just like Brett Lawrence should be

NVM.

misread your original point that I replied to.

 

[deluded pom?]

Semis manager would be getting in his ear convincing him of all the dollars he missing out on. It is so important that these type of players play for their nations. Fiji should have guaranteed test matches and tournaments every year. Players like radradra could be paid some extra NRL cash to be the ambassador of rugby league in the NRL and pacific.

Semi's manager sounds a bit thick. He's secured his client a poor club contract and doesn't even know Semi has to write a letter to the RLIF asking permission to switch to Australia.

 

[Sinman]

I like the idea of the NRL digging into coffers and giving money to Pacific superstars to be ambassadors as long as they stay with their nation.. This works if that nation actually plays 3 or more tests a year.. I also like the idea of having to have lived in a nation for 10 years rather then 3... Means people can still play for their nation of heritage but Australia can't just grab anyone... they will at least be 25+ before Australia can get them..

 

[siv]

Simple answer

During 3 stand alone SOO weekends

4 nation Pacific Cup series of 3 rounds. Each player gets paid $30k paid by tv rights for this series

 

[Scubby]

Sounds from these quotes is that all he wants to do is play Origin. http://rugbyleagueweek.com.au/updat...d=713157592642486272&adbpl=tw&adbpr=197319848

His manager, wrongly probably advised him that a back door option by declaring from Australia was the way in. He was wrong. The is messy and horrible and makes a mockery on Internationals.

If Australia picks international players on a 3-year residency (who have already played for another country) then they must be desperate. Why don't they just have done with it and get Foran, Graham, Burgess, Taumulolo and Whare to switch too and they can start playing with themselves.

Any other sport, that wasn't so bloody insular, would be paying Semi and Koribete a shit load of cash to promote Fiji and the 2017 RLWC to the hilt!

 

[RedVee]

^ so was the story a load of crap... Or are they back-pedalling because Semi is losing lustre in the publics eye since 'the announcement'?

And yes, I'd be very pleased for the sport to pay 1 or 2 from each of the lesser known Nations as a RLWC promotion/ambassador role.

 

[Burns]

Has declared officially for Australia, source Brent Read (The Australia jounro) on Triple M.

 

[roughyedspud]

Yep just seen it on twitter

 

[hutch]

How about we just don't pick him. Crisis averted! Let's do the right thing for once!

 

[Parra Pride]

How about we just don't pick him. Crisis averted! Let's do the right thing for once!

Not many better than him on current form, so hard to justify it if he's declared for Australia.

 

[roughyedspud]

On current form.....thats why they "stole" the last good fijian winger...akulia uate...

Everything that is being said about semi..him being a poster child for fijian RL was said by us 7 years ago about uate