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Currently there is concern that the growth of State of Origin will have a negative impact on the International game.
This was vindicated when New Zealander James Tamou, who was born in Palmerston North and who had represented the New Zealand Maori, recently described his selection for Australia as a sound business decision.
With a push to more than double State of Origin payments from $20,000 to $50,000 there are grave concerns that Tamou is the first in a long line to change allegiance for the money on offer in representing NSW or Queensland.
There has been talk of a New Zealand Origin concept or the establishment of a Polynesian All Stars team. However, I believe that all we need to do is to look at what our English counterparts are currently doing and reproduce the same.
The English have introduced a concept called ‘International Origin’, this consists of the English National Team taking on a team called the ‘Exiles’. The Exiles are made up of foreign players currently playing in the English Super League competition.
The concept was introduced to replace the previously existing annual rugby league Test match between England and France, following the one-sidedness of those tests in previous years. It was hoped that the Exiles would provide more of a challenge to the English than what France was currently offering.
This was proved when, in the inaugural game last year, the Exiles beat the English at the death to claim the match 16-12. This year the concept was expanded to two games and in the future it is hoped to expand to three.
The positive effect this match has includes foreign players being able to again play representative football and the English National side being provided with more competitive matches so it may compete with the likes of Australia and New Zealand.
My point is why cannot we adopt the same concept? Let’s have the Exiles play the New Zealand Kiwis each and every year at State of Origin time. Start off with one match, expand to two and finally, when the series has gained traction and becomes an annual fixture, expand to three – exactly what the English are attempting to do.
The Exiles could be made up of players that cannot represent NSW, Queensland or New Zealand – so English players, Polynesian players, Islander players, and hopefully in the future, players from other Australian states. We could turn the Exiles into a similar version of the Barbarians in rugby union.
A few potential Exiles players spring to mind – Gareth Widdop, Jack Reed, Wes Naiqama, James Graham, Sam Burgess, Gareth Ellis, Chris Heighington, Ashton Sims, Neville Costigan, Will Chambers (NT).
It would be hoped that this concept/series could develop into its own brand, similar to that of State of Origin and would have myriad benefits.
All players would be able to play representative football and it would deter players from choosing NSW or Queensland purely for monetary reasons since, to represent the Exiles, you would not be eligible to represent NSW, Queensland or NZ.
Furthermore, it would give the Kiwis a similar series to State of Origin which would be played in New Zealand. It would be played over an Origin weekend so the NRL would not be effected with an eye to Australia playing New Zealand after the series.
Perhaps most importantly it would create a monetary windfall for both the game and the players.
What are your thoughts? Can this series work?
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