State of Origin eligibility rules need a re-think

ohh and something my partner has said should hit home too........you all seem to be picking on Qld.....they don't make the eligibility rules and neither do N.S.W, so stop blaming each state and look towards the source.

I do have to add that I believe N.S.W did the same in the 90's as they say Qld have done with Ingliss. Ken Nagas as I remember decided to not play for the state he grew up in and played all his junior and 1st grade footy for Toowoomba in Qld. He played 1 game for Newcastle before his career in Canberra so N.S.W said he was eligible to play for them. From memory Qld put up a big fight for him, and all of N.S.W called Qld'ers a bunch of whingers and bad losers. Ken Nagas to this day says the final decision was his to which he chose N.S.W, a decision that he has always regretted making. Sounds very familiar doesn't it. N.S.W complaining about Ingliss.......just get on with it!

I have been reading through the comments and understanding the points being put foward by all. I am making my comment from the view of an outsider as I am not Australian, but I have taken a liking to Rugby League in all its forms-domestic, representative & international. When I first started to watch SOO in the late 80's & 90's the trend seemed to be that when N.S.W won they were the better side and deserving victory, but when Qld won they were a bunch of cheating bastards. I just thought it was a case of bad losers having a go. Todays game has evolved into a spectacular sport that is producing some terrific players and the training these guys get is outstanding and to the best standards available today, so who is to blame for the N.S.W players losing 7 series in a row? Well you can blame Qld for a start because they obviously won,but you can not blame the loss of a player to a state for it. Greg Ingliss is 1 man but not the team and from what I saw it was a team effort by Qld. N.S.W have some awesome individual players who played as individuals and not as part of a team. There are more players who should not be playing SOO in N.S.W's side than Qld's, but that is because they were chosen to play. State of Origin is the pinnacle of the sport, I would rather watch that than an international as it is the hardest game out there and because the game now is so diverse with people from all over the world playing in Australia because it has the best competition in the world, it comes as no surprise that players want to play SOO. And I say let them, if a player is chosen to play by a state then he should feel privilaged. In reguards to N.S.W losing players to Qld, the games laws always seem to change when Qld is on top. Eligibilty has changed too, most players everyone are talking about have played in both Qld & N.S.W and have chosen which state they want to play for, if N.S.W can not secure them, then surely it comes back to their sales pitch. If Greg Ingliss was forced to not play for Qld, would he play for N.S.W? I think yes as SOO is the best game you could play. My last word on this is that Qld & N.S.W need to stop ripping the rules apart to suit themselves, keep developing the game by all means but don't destroy the game we all love.

I mention Langer as up until that point it was understood you had to play in the domestic competition to be eligible for SOO, and Langer was not doing this at the time of his selection. I mention Folau as back when the Super League war erupted those who signed for the "other" competition were deemed ineligible for SOO. Folau has quite clearly done the same thing, and no disrespect to him for that, but he should have been ineligible. I have no doubt NSW have inferior talent to choose from at the moment, I just point out that Qld have long exploited or created loopholes when choosing their teams. Using the Tonie Carroll example NSW should have chosen Sonny Bill Williams, Benji Marshall and Sam Burgess, though I doubt even they could help NSW much.

The game is called "State" of Origin ... QLD vs NSW and thats the way it should stay.... QLD vs NSW have been playing each other since day dot, though pre 1981 any QLD player playing in the NSW competition would play for NSW and hence NSW dominated. Since 1981 the "State of Origin" concept has become the pinnacle of Rugby League, don't try to fix what is not broke. If you mess with the concept too much it won't be the same and die... it is driven by the passion of the supporters for their teams from their "State" because they feel a bond with them. Just like you support your country, your bond with your country is your bond with your team.

"We can’t punish players who play junior football in NSW or Queensland for wanting to play Origin, and by doing that, sacrifice a chance to play for their home nation." I totally agree with your comments.. Fiji barely gets to play international league matches and when they do get the chance, they would like to play with all the best players they have, afterall we are ranked 4th and to force Uate to nullify his allegiance to fiji just so that he can play in the State of Origins which for the last 2 years has lost its appeal is downright stupid..if the NRL goes ahead and tries to get Uate's allegiance to fiji forfeited, then this would really kill the game of league in the pacific for sure as the samoa and tonga teams would also lose out if this ever happens...I'd rather have Uate play rugby union than stick to league and lose his allegiance to his homeland just because of a technicality which the NRL is not willing to rectify

I say we keep it real simple. If someone wants to play for NSW, they can. If they want to play for QLD, they can. Once you've chosen a side, you're stuck there, but you can still freely play internationals for whoever.

I don't understand the Langer reference. He didn't become British nor play for any other nation whilst he was over there. He only played club footy. The Folau argument is pointless. As of today he is the best player in his position playing the game today, so QLD picked him. Should they sack Lockyer because he hasn't made a commitment to play rep footy next year? Your last comment sums up your true gripe; the Inglis / Folau issue which has been extensively covered in the past and I might add NSW did this kind of thing first without so much hoopla. Again my advice is to worry about what can change for NSW or else QLD will win the next 5 as well. An under 9's team could have done the Bluesers tonight.

Who cares?

Exactly, the rules change to help Australia....

If you are eligable for developing nations ie: Tonga,Fiji, Samoa,PNG but you play junior footy in NSW/QLD you are allowed to play Origin and also play for their nation of heritage. The international game would be better off for it. Its a pretty simple solution

The selection guidelines for origin are a very strange set of circumstances, how is it that Tonie Carroll could represent NZ then come back & represent Qld? Why could Adrian Lam play year in & year out for PNG and Qld? Why could Allan Langer return from the UK to play for Qld? Israel Folau going to AFL, gets picked for Qld. What are the selection guidelines for SOO? Anything goes for Qld that is the main rule....

So M1tch, you think its broken. Care to offer some suggestions? Allow a free for all and you pick where and for whom you play for? Only allow Australian players to play Origin? Stop Qld picking players from NSW a la Greg Inglis?

Those rules didn't stop Hayne or Jennings playing Origin six months after the 2008 RLWC.

Yes, and this is one issue that needs fixing, along with a hundred more. These rules are so out of date, just like the leaders running rugby league, but they are more interested in the mistake in there paychecks, than advancing the game,. Why do you think i get fructrated, the last world cup highlighted this complete mess, anything been done? no.