What Australia needs to do for the World game

[roopy]

Why the hell would Civo play for Fiji when he is easily the best Australian prop? Also I doubt Fiji are paying their players 10k a game or whatever it is.

Rugby League loses so much credibility with this player switch bs. Also I'll give you the tip... international league dont have much credibility.

People on this forum agonised over player availabillity for years and talked about how the public and press would carry on about it and nothing else during the WC - and i've hardly seen a mention.
The only people who care even a little bit are the committed fans. The general public don't give a toss.

 

[watatank]

Australia needs to lose, simple as that. I really don't think Petero playing for Fiji would have made a huge difference, not any more than what say Tuqiri playing for them has done in the past or Hayne this year, say. It would be more beneficial for the game if someone can challenge Australia rather than the whole RLWC being a battle for second place.

 

[Brownie.Kougari]

Civonoceva moved here when he was 2, he's bloody Australian!

 

[ShadesOfTheSun]

Jeeez how hard is this?? If Australia had not picked the FIJIAN Civinoceva to play for them whenever they did he would be playing for Fiji!!

... and players would be up in arms about being barred from State of Origin and Australian selection based on their ethnic background.

In a hypothetical situation for the betterment of the game, say a Tongan player emerges from the Tongan comp and moves to Australia as things stand at the minute the ARL would entice him to switch to play for the Kangeroos, that cannot be right!!

But Civinoceva emerged from the Australian competition. He holds Australian citizenship, has spent the virtual entirety of his playing career in Australia, and is entitled to consider himself Australian if he so chooses. The only way the situation you desire can come to pass is if we ban any and all players who were born in a country other than Australia, NZ or England from playing for any country but that which they were born in.

That's just not going to happen. Too many players would speak out against it and the media would be merciless in pointing out the contradiction inherent in disbarring immigrants from playing for the national team, despite maintaining that they're just as Australian as anybody else.

 

[VonVolks]

this has never happened though. there has never, ever been a player signed to move to australia who has playde for ther kangaroos, and the only player to have done so in origin is craig smith, which was a farce which will never happen again.

err I believe Hazem El Masri was Captain of Lebanon, then played for Australia.

Also this has happened with Robbie Farrah one of Lebanon's outstanding young talents. He DIDN'T play in the qualifiers because he was threatened with not being allowed to play State of Origin if he did play for Lebanon. What non international rep footy has to do with it is a joke.... part of why the Aussie power structures and there constant self interest needs to be sorted for the good of the international game. If Robbie had played in the qualifiers, lebanese might have been in the WC finals!

I agree that Australia shouldn't pick players who have repped another country, but I also think the Civonaciva example is wrong, as he chose Australia first, and had every right to do so. I just don't like people switching back and forth or using small nations as a chance to shine then switch to Australia (or NZ or England etc)

 

[OVP]

I think there is a bit of point missing here.

You are again missing the point

Jeeez how hard is this??

Its all about Australia looking beyond their own domestic game.

If we are serious about developing the sport then these are the things we must implement.

Its alright being coy and saying teams should develop their own stars over night to compete, but the truth is they never will be able to unless they get a helping hand.
Reply With Quote

Its about be selfless for the benefit of the game.

In a hypothetical situation for the betterment of the game

Such spellbinding arrogance
Such mind-numbingly dull topics (usually repeated ad nauseum)
Such overwhelming stupidity

Why it can only be Mark123 aka Dangermouse. Hi there Marky Mark !! :nwave:

Will you keep this persona for good now ? Or do you have others we should be aware of ?

 

[Loudstrat]

Mark2 is an average version of mark123

 

[East Coast Tiger]

Does this rule about not choosing players eligible for others include players eligible for England, Ireland or Scotland, or is it just for players eligible for non-Anglo/Celtic/European countries?

 

[roopy]

This is where Rugby Union sh*ts all over us.

After 100 years of being the number two code they never miss a chance to do the selfless thing to promote their code - which is why they not only exist with a second rate product, but actually prosper.

It is obvious that Australian Rugby League would have the most to gain by making the effort to grow the game internationally, but Australia will strangle the living sh*t out of anyone else and remain king sh*ts of turd mountain forever.

It doesn't matter that it is a tiny sport, just so long as we remain absolutely dominant till no one else cares to bother.

Australia is the little boy with all the marbles, and no one wants to play.

 

[hutch]

err I believe Hazem El Masri was Captain of Lebanon, then played for Australia.

err, i believe el masri is an immigrant to australia, he moved here as a young child. he wasnt signed by a rugby league club to move here which is what i said had never happened.

Also this has happened with Robbie Farrah one of Lebanon's outstanding young talents. He DIDN'T play in the qualifiers because he was threatened with not being allowed to play State of Origin if he did play for Lebanon. What non international rep footy has to do with it is a joke.... part of why the Aussie power structures and there constant self interest needs to be sorted for the good of the international game. If Robbie had played in the qualifiers, lebanese might have been in the WC finals!

i think you are talking about one of australias outstanding young talents in robbie farah, not lebanons. farah wants to play for his country, he shouldnt be allowed to play for lebanon. however, it does look like a bit of a joke now not allowing him to play for his second country as the rlif have allowed players such as hayne playing for fiji, jennings for tonga, robertson for scotland, costigan for png without it affecting their chances of origin and australia. it is a joke that players are allowed to switch so easily, and when farah was rejected he was told that he would have to sit out for 2 years before switching back to nsw and australia. now their rule is you can switch countries only once every years, not stand down for two years.

I agree that Australia shouldn't pick players who have repped another country, but I also think the Civonaciva example is wrong, as he chose Australia first, and had every right to do so. I just don't like people switching back and forth or using small nations as a chance to shine then switch to Australia (or NZ or England etc)

players shouldnt be allowed to rep more than one country, but the only reason players such as hayne, jennings etc are playing for other countries is because it doesnt affect their dreams of playing for australia.

 

[VonVolks]

Hutch I didnt get your intentions about a club sponsored move. No worries.

You can say that about Farrah he is Australian, yeah but he is Lebanese as well, and his first rep footy was for Lebanon, therefore in International RL terms he is Lebanese. No point arguing about that.

I hate the current rules and switching about, as well as the bias for Australia & NZ (ie the rule that you can nominate to be an Aussie player, but in the meantime can play for a 2nd nation while you wait for the Kangaroo call up!!!).

Once a player has nominated for a country, they should stick with that country. Australia should help this by saying once you have played for another country you cannot play for Australia BUT you are still eligible for Origin, if you are an Aussie citizen too. (The origin is a big money earner & prestige game for Oz players. Using it as a weapon in International selection is blatantly unfair to the players)

Make young players think about who they are playing for and why. This is quite idealistic and will only work if international football is run well with good comps, as otherwise what player will nominate for a smaller nation if they never get any good games!

 

[Noa]

The facts are that as long as the NRL season is as long as it is and EVERYTHING revolves around State Of Origin (which isnt what the founders intended) Australia will do practically nothing for international League.

Personally I think they should be playing more games agsaint the likes of Tonga, Fiji and Samoa and maybe even *shock, horror* fly to England for a one off test during the season, but that'll never happen.

 

[roopy]

The facts are that as long as the NRL season is as long as it is and EVERYTHING revolves around State Of Origin (which isnt what the founders intended) Australia will do practically nothing for international League.

Personally I think they should be playing more games agsaint the likes of Tonga, Fiji and Samoa and maybe even *shock, horror* fly to England for a one off test during the season, but that'll never happen.

I don't agree.
The day they can see big dollars in the international game they will trample their grandmothers to get to the money.

 

[Noa]

I don't agree.
The day they can see big dollars in the international game they will trample their grandmothers to get to the money.

Sure they will, when that day comes. But that day aint here yet.

Maybe I shoulda said "a long way off yet" rather then "it'll never happen", as I do think it will happen one day, just not for a long time. For it too happen though we need a complete turnaround in how we approach SOS.

 

[KalgoorlieRed]

Yeah it's a bit rough, letting an Australian citizen play for the Australian team.

The Aussie's will be letting martians play next, just because they buy vegemite! Pathetic.

 

[KalgoorlieRed]

Reiterating: Civinoceva opted to pledge his allegiance to Australia, and not to Fiji. Even if Australia were to refuse to select him for the RLWC, under the current eligibility laws, he could not be selected for Fiji. The same goes for Hunt and Tupou - they either play for Australia or they don't play at all. Simple as that.

Then I hope he's given up his Fijian citizenship??? Oh but I bet he hasn't for 'convenient' purposes! Makes the game a layghing stock!

 

[ShadesOfTheSun]

I hate the current rules and switching about, as well as the bias for Australia & NZ (ie the rule that you can nominate to be an Aussie player, but in the meantime can play for a 2nd nation while you wait for the Kangaroo call up!!!).

Once a player has nominated for a country, they should stick with that country. Australia should help this by saying once you have played for another country you cannot play for Australia BUT you are still eligible for Origin, if you are an Aussie citizen too. (The origin is a big money earner & prestige game for Oz players. Using it as a weapon in International selection is blatantly unfair to the players)

The rule exists to protect the so-called minnows; were it to be scrapped, you could bet your life that many of the players they currently call upon would have pledged allegiance to Australia or New Zealand, and never be seen in the RLWC at all. Do you seriously think that Robbie Farah would have ever pulled on a Lebanon jumper if it meant that he would be disbarring himself forever from playing State of Origin, or one day wearing a Kangaroo jumper?

The fact of the matter is that playing for a country such as Australia, NZ or England means more internationals, more prestige and, when you get right down to it, a LOT more money. Just about any player with semi-decent prospects of pulling on a Kangaroo or Kiwi jumper would rather sit out international RL entirely rather than jeopordise the chance to substantially boost their market value.

As for your take on Origin, I agree. There is no particular reason why someone should only be able to feel passion for a State if they feel a similar passion for the country. Why shouldn't someone be able to feel passionate about the State in which they live, and yet also feel passionate about their heritage or cultural background?

 

[ShadesOfTheSun]

Then I hope he's given up his Fijian citizenship??? Oh but I bet he hasn't for 'convenient' purposes! Makes the game a layghing stock!

I don't really see what that has to do with anything. I have Malaysian (as well as Australian and Canadian) citizenship, yet do not consider myself to be Malaysian and don't feel the slightest bit of affiliation with the country. There is simply no particular reason why I should give up being a citizen of Malaysia, and it might prove useful to me in the future.

And all that's moot, in any case, because we don't even know if Civinoceva has given up his Fijian citizenship or not.

 

[Shorty]

It's not the international team that robs other countries of good players - It's the fact that SOO requires players to pledge their alliance.
This is how it is,the greatest event and weapon for RL actually is a double edged sword.

But at this stage Australia could do wonders by not letting England steal so many players and in return England actually putting some effort into their local players and bringing up decent juniors would have their international status greatly.

The Kiwis were going somewhere until Sonny Bill flew off,they just need leaders and a great coach/mentor(Wayne Bennett will do wonders).

At this stage that is all that can be expected.

 

[roopy]

I thought it was a bit funny that SBW had trouble when fleeing to France because he was travelling on a Samoan passport.