oh my, say it isn’t so…..

and damage the development of Tier 2 and Tier 3 rugby.

The problem with this line of thinking and article that if Rugby follows this course of action it will never be a global sport. Rugby despite all the platitudes and releases is insular and that is reflected in the DNA
If SA is allowed to play in Europe will damage T2 Rugby irretrievable

The reason take over of Saracens by the Consortium which involved the Owner of the Sharks
(Masotti) does make you wonder what is the end,

Having said all that and CVC investing 300 Million they will want their pound of flesh in the end.

oh I know, but the irony of it all….

His Friday Night Dinner is ruined! rue the day someone upset a judge

How does someone get a court hearing at 8:45 pm in Australia on a Friday night?

I thought all arrested or detained are put in a holding cell (drunk tank) until Monday morning? 😂 😂

Not the Pharisees liberation front?

Tomorrow’s Headline

Game Set Match: Judge Kelly wins by Default

His rivals will be enjoying this, opens up draw and is anyone’s game.

I agree, they made a dog’s breakfast out of the whole debacle. All this BS that is a AO, State or Federal level has made a mockery of the system.

I don’t like him either particularly after the US open when pleaded like a petulant child after he hit a lineswoman.

His views are divisive but he should have been treated within the frame work of how the law.

It should have never been overturned… He came in through a back door deal.

The medical exemptions are for people who have not been able to get fully vaccinated for medical or health reasons, that is, they have a medical contraindication to being vaccinated (adverse reaction)

Djokovic was not seeking an exemption for vaccination based on an adverse reaction he was aiming to bypass this requirement by “fortuitously” having been infected with COVID-19 and never intended to be vaccinated.

This is an individual who is ideologically against vaccines and vaccine mandates, and has made this very clear since the beginning of the pandemic.

He has been a vocal proponent of the notion that the immune system can simply be built up to resist infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This misconception/misconstrued (for lack of a better word) reveals a fundamental lack of understanding of immunology and virology.

He has ignored the science and refused to be vaccinated, a very strong message could have been sent by upholding Djokovic’s visa cancellation. that being the rules apply to everyone.

He has Freedom of choice but there are consequences for your decision and your actions, to paraphrase Rafael Nadal

“On a personal level, I’d much rather he didn’t play,” Nadal joked, adding “everything is much better when the best can be playing.”

This is how I understand the current situation entering Australia if you are a foreigner:
Obtaining a visa is not a waiver of point of entry requirements (eg proof of vaccination or negative PCR test within a prescribed time, or both).
Further we know Djokovic first contracted the virus in June 2020 (ADRIA TOUR), and there is now a strong suggestion he tested positive again at some point in the past six months. That still leaves, at the very least, the entire first six months of 2021 in which he had ample opportunity to be vaccinated.
Tennis Australia was told explicitly in writing a number of times that a recent COVID infection was not an acceptable reason not to be fully vaccinated. this includes the Victorian State Government who were told ATAGI did not endorse the process.
So the blame is not Border force but the Victorian State Government (who are backtracking) but would have required 2 weeks quarantine and Tennis Australia gone off half-cocked in that they don’t make the rules for entry into the country.
You can have a valid visa, but at the moment you also need a valid vaccination status, unless you have an exemption.
His visa was valid, his reason for an exemption to vaccination was not.
The federal authorities did their job and applied the rules consistently. so many people attack the federal authorities, Border Force and the government, for doing their job. on this occasion.

Disgrace is an understatement. After the fiasco of his ADRIA Tour and his anti vax stance he gets a free pass.. hypocrisy knows no bounds.

Australians abroad still have issues getting home because of the costs and hurdles the government has put in place and this Anti-vaxer gets a trip to compete.

The problem with the current England setup by Giles and his mate Silverwood and encouraged by the Captain have Players have been molly coddled, given extended time off, rested and rotated, failures rewarded with limitless chances to continue failing. Simply have no backbone.

The County system work if the said players actually played in the competition. also some of them keep jumping to 20/20 or one day there is no consistency.

This was a pleasure to watch… Anderson was the epitome of swing bowling yesterday.
Astonishing longevity for any player, never mind a fast bowler. Cherish him while you still can

The problem with the current England setup by Giles and his mate Silverwood and encouraged by the Captain have Players have been molly coddled, given extended time off, rested and rotated, failures rewarded with limitless chances to continue failing. Simply have no backbone

Hello Nic,
Great Article and contributions, I love your articles this year.
Having seen Hooper at Twickenham in November I now can fully appreciated and understand what you are saying and how he is meant to be the link. “he is there to play off power and provide the linking play on attack.”
Had he stayed on and not get injured the result would have been much closer or evolved differently.
Nic, I wish you and your family all the very best for the coming Christmas, and for the New Year.

I have him on the list as Australian but he is Irish Capped.

FYI: There are 96 Argentines playing professional Rugby in France.

NB did you know there are 55 Australian playing in Europe?
Top 14 : 28
Premiership: 15
URC: 12

I lived near Sunbury where their training and Academy are held and have popped in from time to time to watch. Is not just Australians that are taking the opportunity to play in the NH including Argentina and Uruguayan players.

Players playing in quality set ups overseas have a major benefit as they are learning new styles of rugby and different ways of playing or way of thinking,

If they do return to their home country they can share their learnings with their National team or club.

Current Argentinian players in the Premiership

A Creevy London Irish
F Gigena London Irish
R Martínez Wasps
JM González Samso L Irish
L Cinti L Irish
M Carreras Newcastle
F Cordero Exeter

This doesn’t include all the players plying the trade in France or Ireland so there is definitely a case for associations between Australia and NH.

Great article and some very good points raised, if others can do it why can’t Australia?

Yes it is a harsh comments but bear with me, For years, the America’s have been told they must demonstrate development and home grown programmes to be members of the IRB (later World Rugby) show developing pathways etc..

The same people who have demanded the America’s build their programme have allowed the Pacific Islanders to move around their players as export commodities over the years and not put check and balances on the PI’s and domestic programmes.

Furthermore, many of rugby’s problems have always been about self-interest. The problem the sport has which is unique in the world sporting landscape, and this new rule change is another example of it, is that the sport is too afraid to disrupt what it has.

The Pacific Islands have been a huge part of the sports history, and yet everyone knows they would be the first ones to lose out if the game were to genuinely catch on in other parts of the world.

It’s the same mentality behind keeping the 6 nations closed, by allowing 12 nations to automatically for every World Cup, rugby is a sport stuck in a constant loop of both trying to expand its presence whilst keeping together what it currently has.

The problem is those two paths are in opposition to one and other, only one or the other can win. Cricket had the same two paths and made a choice, it said ‘screw you’ to its T2 nations. As deplorable as that decision was, they made a choice and they’ll have to live with the consequences.

Rugby Union is faced with a choice that it frankly doesn’t want. If you want to expand the game something from the status quo has to give.

If the game ever took off in the US, Spain, Brazil, Germany, Portugal, Russia, etc, then the power would shift dramatically away from the current order, and it wouldn’t just be the Pacific Islands that would suffer from that, the entire T1 landscape would suffer too.

Probably only England, France, South Africa, Argentina, Japan and maybe Ireland would withstand that level of change.

I couldn’t even see New Zealand withstanding that. So, the sport is trapped trying to do two things that contradict each other, and this law change is just another example of it.

The original proposal was based on the Portugal proposal who came out with the original planned, PRW took a step further as they had the backing of Beaumont etc..

I total agree, they are relying on their diaspora and the return of a lot of players. still is a slap in the face for T2 Countries.
PI’s and their Allies cannot seem to see the big picture how this affect the vast majority of T2 Countries and their domestique programmes and pathways.

Let’s be clear this measure is not going to help the likes of Uruguay or Argentina. Which have Homegrown programmes
Argentina face Samoa in 2023 pool stage, how does that make them feel that suddenly they are facing a loaded team of former internationals from T1 Countries.
How do you think Los Pumas will feel if they finish 4th in their pool at RWC 2023 because a Samoa team full of ex-AB’s defeats them, having spent the past 20 years developing their domestic player pathway?
without a doubt, the measure has the clear objective of strengthening the Pacific islands at the expense of other T2 Nations. In the letter published by the Pacific Rugby Welfare group almost genuinely believe (they and Dan Leo) they would love to see a domestic PI XV. But are massively underestimating the reality, that picking up the phone to recruit an AB is FAR more cost effective. Further not happy with the 3 years stand down period they are advocating 18 months!
We need to put things in perspective, as much as I personally dislike this rule, we should not be angry at the union’s that wanted it (although perhaps at the union’s that didn’t have strong feelings but voted on it for some reason).
We should reserve our anger to those unions (Fiji and Canada?) who voted for the people that bring you the closed shop and the current World Council voting system that favours Tier 1 ahead of any Tier2&3 influence which is currently disjointed.
They (THE PI’s) think is all going to be peachy without seeing the implications. They had decades ahead of Latin America in Developing domestically and squandered their opportunity and now they got their rule changes.
Good luck to them.

You should watch the Cheika interview on Jones, absolute Gold.