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In this modern era of international travel and global club competitions, players should be forced to play Test rugby for the nation of their birth.
The residency clause in World Rugby’s eligibility criteria should be done away with in order to maintain the integrity of the game.
Other eligibility criteria such as parent or grandparent linkages should also be abolished.
Before a Test series or season players should provide relevant birth documents to a World Rugby representative to prove they were born in the country they are representing.
For the odd, unusual case where a player may have moved around a lot in early childhood, then a special World Rugby tribunal could be set up to allow the player to petition their case based on merits and decide on objective factors such as the nationality of parents and time spent in various countries.
In the vast majority of cases however, the matter will be simple – play for the nation in which you were born. End of story.
In the modern age it is impossible to determine if a migrant professional footballer from the age of 16 upwards is truly invested in their new country or is simply filling in the paperwork for the sake of earning a seven-figure income. If it is the latter, it makes a mockery of our sacred Test football, turning it into just another international club league.
This change will help to strengthen the basis of Test rugby as a spectacle, and allow the major club competitions to get on with recruiting the best stars from around the world without any incentives of recruiting them for the national squad.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.