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With the sudden departure of Sam Burgess to rugby union, the State of Origin eligibility rules have once again been put under the microscope.
As a result, the question of opening the age-old contest to foreign rugby league stars has been raised.
For a long time, I have been a firm believer in having strict eligibility guidelines for State of Origin, mainly to stop fence-hoppers like Greg Inglis playing for a different state.
As a New South Wales supporter, I was appalled by the amount of foreign NRL stars declaring their devotion to Queensland too.
This isn’t to say that the same hasn’t happened with the Blues, as there have been many controversial eligibility issues in the past – the most recent of which involved Kiwi-turned-Australian front row forward, James Tamou.
While this was acceptable under the guidelines at the time, it was clear that they were not Queensland nor NSW-bred through and through.
They did not experience the years of heartbreak as a child when Queensland would be crushed over and over by the sky blues, nor the resounding wins when they would conquer the New South Welshmen for eight years straight.
They did not experience the embarrassment of showing up at school the next day after a series loss, knowing that any supporters of the opposite state would, whenever possible, let you know of their state’s superiority.
Likewise, they didn’t experience the worshipping of state legends such as Andrew Johns or Billy Slater, nor the constant daydreaming of one day playing for their beloved state.
I am all for keeping the game’s biggest stars , Australian or not, in the NRL and out of rugby union or the Super League.
And if a sky blue or maroon jersey is enough to persuade them to remain loyal to the NRL, then I’d like the NRL hierarchy to at least consider it, for the good of the game.
Without State of Origin, there is unfortunately little else the NRL can offer over rugby union.
Rugby union can offer a sizeable increase in a player’s salary, and the opportunity to represent your country in a very important Rugby World Cup campaign or even the sevens format in the Olympics.
State of Origin is the pinnacle of rugby league as a whole, and it is the ultimate goal for players to strive for. It would no doubt be an even bloodier battle with the likes of the Burgess brothers and Sonny Bill Williams in the mix.
For most people, it is an infinitely higher honour to represent your state in State of Origin than to represent your country in rugby league, which actually says a lot about the current importance of the Rugby League World Cup.
This is the dilemma that the NRL hierarchy is faced with, and will prove to be an enormous decision for Dave Smith and co.
It would undoubtedly remove a certain degree of the intensity between the two states, knowing that a match-winning try wasn’t really scored by a genuine Queenslander or New South Welshman.
If it was me in Dave Smith’s shoes, I’d turn down the inclusion of foreign players.
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