How to solve the Origin eligibility confusion

Papilli also said that he wouldn't feel right playing against the Kiwis.. And that he'd like to do both. As did Tamou . The ARL embrace the best kiwi talent because it is good for the game and in turn great viewing which = more revenue. Unfortunately they seem to think that this also means that these players are fair game for SOO and Kangaroos selection. I don't buy this whole well Aus invested so they should be paid back bs. They invested because it suited their business to have the best talent, nothing else. To throw the problem all back on NZRL as their problem in a rabid Rugby Union dominated country is ridiculous.. Bring back 3 test series, I still can't see why we accept these token one off tests. The ALL Blacks play 11 times this year and are yet to drop a game.. what do NZ league fans get? 2 one off tests.. They will always favour the team that has played together in combinations consistently, need I expand on this any further? Kiwis always perform better over a series for the same reasons. Also addressing the oft heard justification for poaching Kiwi sworn talent to play SOO & then Kangaroos etc . Australian born Kiwi selections such as Beale Hoffman etc. if your parents spoke German at home but you were born in Australia, isn't it more likely that you would still consider yourself German? Also every Kiwi RL fan has a state of Origin team they choose to follow, but you NEVER get to choose your home team. When it comes to RL Your either a Kiwi or your a Kangaroo at heart. I know plenty of Kiwis who are true queenslanders , none would extend that support to the Kangaroos when playing the Kiwis..

I agree with this point. Why can't you be a proud Queenslander and a Kiwi? I don't see the need for the two to be mutually exclusive.

Regrettably, rugby league has that tiger by the ears and cant let go. But you can minimise the damage by saying 'Origin are exhibition games, and do not affect Test selection in any way'.

I don't understand why people just can't understand it , if you move to aus . Live our life style , enjoy our sunshine , play our great game of rugby league , except a rep jnr jersey when in ur heart u no u don't support what that jersey means , when u no that boy that might b smaller besides u bleeds for , well I don't know what to say , basic joist I'm getting is come to qld cause the opportunity is greater make the jnr qld , aus teams ( benji ) that the qld n aus rugby league invest money in , n then say nah bro I'm a kiwi , ,,,,,,, what would u like to bend me over as well , get a grip , 8 boys I can think of that was in the last Nzl team picked , that were born n learnt there skills in aus !! But give us sht about kas n papal, u can have kas , but papal Said t him self , wouldn't feel right the time n money nested in me here were it was more promising ! Well said mate respect

The whole idea of birth location determining eligibility is rubbish, and it’s foolish to continue to harp on about it. The idea that someone could be born in one place, live the majority of their lives in another and not be allowed to represent that area is ridiculous, and plain stupid. Why are we so arrogant to think that only league has this issue? Why isn’t there an article written about the Mo Farah winning a gold for the British? Was he born in the UK? Get over this “where he was born” idea, as it is idiotic and never going to happen. You're basically saying that people who weren't born in Australia, have no right to be Australians. Why not look at New Zealand rugby league and start asking questions there? Do they have a national comp to develop local players? Queensland does. NSW does. WA does. VIC does. What is New Zealand doing to develop the game and players in their own country? Picking a Kiwi like Papali who’s been through the Australia development system, Australia money spent to get him where he is, lived in Australia the majority of his life, can you tell me what NZ have done to deserve his services? New Zealand is the country stealing player and I have no sympathy for their “plight”. If they actually did something for rugby league and developed the sport in their country it would go a long way to providing a leg to stand on when whinging about pinched players.

"Fewer than 70 teams" MG, not "less". I would expect more from you. And on the the nationality question, I suggest we only let those players who can trace their roots back to either the original settlers (as defined by the First, Second and Third Fleets), or those who are Aboriginal play for Australia. All the rest are just pretending to be fair dinkum Aussies.

MG you are absolutely correct. To show your conviction you should find Stirlo, look him straight in the eye and tell him he is a traitor and should have played for Queensland. You first champ.

I agree. All you hear is how SOO impacts NZL. The RL world is more than Aus, NZL, and ENG. Others have full TEST status, such as those Pacific Island nations. If those who bemoan the impact of SOO eligibility on the NZL team were serious they would consider the impact that the NZL team has on Samoa, Tonga, and the Cooks. Any criteria that is established should also take a look at both the Aust and the NZL teams and disseminate how many players would then have been available for other nations. You may find that NZL has had a greater impact of non-NZL born players in their TEST teams than either QLD and NSW combined.

If the player is NZ born but an naturalized Aus citizen then he should play for Australia. If he is a long time permanent resident but still a NZ citizen then it's the Kiwis for him. Saying that I also believe that if they play their first senior game in Qld or NSW then they should be able to represent that state and NZ. Benji Marshall is as much a Qlder as he is a Kiwi.

And get this, you all know or have heard of Kebra Park on the Gold Coast, and look at who won the junior comp this year. ? The Tigers, and where do they get their players from? Kebra Park, and where do the players come from to get into the Kebra park system, ? Yes, New Zealand. What does this all mean, i will tell you, times are changing yet the game has stood still for way too long. 3 origin teams a must, and maybe even look at a exile team or island origin. Expand to Adelaide and Perth, bring in another NZ team, Wellington, forget the south island. It is too volitile.

This problem could be solved by scrapping origin altogether...

Where a player is born should not be the only consideration. As many have pointed out, people who are born in one place and move early in their life don't necessarily feel loyal to their birth place. Billy Moore was born in Tenterfield, NSW - should he have played for NSW?

Don't worry about the Kiwis, they're not doing too badly. Beale, Foran, Hoffman, Pritchard, all of them Oz born or developed talent. Even Benji got his league education in Oz. These players could have elected Oz, but they chose the Kiwis. You can't legislate choice. You can only hope players make their choices for the right reasons. What really is hurting origin is the increasingly bitter, often paranoid, and unpleasant nature of some of the NSW v Qld rivalry. From accusations, to silly songs, and unacceptable behaviour by some fans. It shouldn't matter where you were born. That's too arbitrary in these modern times. Though he may not be Oz born, Petero is a great Qlder, and a great Ozzie. For me, guys like him represent what origin is about. Shame on those who would disrespect him.

No, I don't mean that. Obviously Origin performances are important in deciding the Australian team, but so is club form. Barba will probably be in the Australian team, as was Cherry-Evans, but no SOO appearances. I more meant that the idea of restricting SOO eligibility to "Australian" players, BECAUSE it was to be preserved as the primary trial for Australia, was weakening.

Sterlo is not a good reference point, Quote - "Peter Sterling has it right when he says we must simplify Origin eligibility rules; a player must play for the country in which he was born, if he still retains that country’s citizenship at the time of selection" By his reckoning he should have played for Queensland. Another fly in the ointment is Bob Fulton, a pommie, if still playing would never have had been eligible for NSW. Precedences have been set since 1980 and will be difficult to denounce BUT one such stipulation and only one that goes somewhere towards simplifying selection is to be an Australian citizen, whether born here or taken up citizenship after qualifying. The we have the ridiculous, but necessary rule on where the player first played senior football or where he really wants to play. It currently like alphabet soup - the letters (rules) are there but ever so jumbled. A brand new eligibility format ought to be thrashed out NOW - though I doubt any set of rules could be contested in court by a disgruntled player if he felt he was being subjected to unfair selection criteria. Best of luck with this one MG

Yes, but is your place of birth rule across-the-board? Would this not rule out those Kiwis born in Samoa, Tonga etc?