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Goodbye Giteau Law? RA set to scrap controversial rule

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15th August, 2021
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Rugby Australia is reportedly set to respond to the Wallabies’ latest Bledisloe Cup hammering by scrapping the controversial ‘Giteau Law’.

According to a report from the Sydney Morning Herald, the sporting body will either remove or loosen the current law, with potentially immediate effect.

Currently, the rule only permits players based overseas to pull on the gold jersey if they’ve played more than 60 Tests and spent seven seasons playing in Australia. It was famously introduced in the lead-up to the 2015 World Cup to allow then-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika to select its namesake, Matt Giteau.

Since then, it has been tweaked to allow Rennie to pick two players outside the criteria, as well as players who are about to return to playing down under.

Wallabies’ selection has historically been designed to ensure the bulk of Australia’s most talented players would choose to play in the country; however, the decline of the Super Rugby competition and lucrative opportunities overseas, particularly in Japan, have caused the current system to come under fire in recent years.

Currently, several experienced players, including Will Skelton, Sean McMahon and Tolu Latu, are based overseas and fail to meet the Giteau Law requirements. With a young Wallabies team once again hammered by the All Blacks in the ongoing Bledisloe Cup series, it’s easy to see why calls for change have been so forthcoming.

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