Donal Lenihan: Eligibility rule change could transform rugby — but be bad news for Ireland

From January next players can now represent their country of birth or that of their parents or grandparents, despite having already been capped for another country, provided a period of three years has elapsed since their last international appearance

GOOD RECRUIT: Bristol’s Charles Piutau takes on Tom Woolstencroft of Saracens during the Gallagher Premiership match at Ashton Gate. Former Ulster star Piutau is one of several former All Blacks set to boost Tonga’s ranks ahead of the 2023 World Cup in France. Picture: Dan Mullan/Getty Images

What an eventful week that proved to be. I had originally intended to focus on the impact of the South African sides playing at home in the URC for the first time but as we know by now, Omicron, the latest variant of the coronavirus, put paid to that.

From an international perspective, the biggest news to break this week and one that will prove a game-changer for the fanatical rugby playing Pacific Islands of Fiji, Tonga, and Samoa, is the decision by World Rugby to change the rules around international eligibility.

From next month, players can now represent their country of birth or that of their parents or grandparents, despite having already been capped by another country, provided a period of three years has elapsed since their last international appearance.

The player can only change allegiance once and each case is subject to the approval of World Rugby’s regulations committee in order to preserve integrity. As with all rule changes, there is scope for unintended consequences but overall it is welcome, especially in light of the potential impact it has on several Tier 2 countries.

While in theory, it means the likes of CJ Stander could appear for the Springboks three years after his last appearance for Ireland, it is more specifically geared towards allowing some outstanding Pacific Island players capped for another country, in some cases at U20 or A level and subsequently discarded, to appear for their country of birth or ancestry.

The international game badly needs to increase the depth and competitiveness of tournament rugby, especially at World Cups. In the nine events played to date New Zealand, South Africa, and Australia have won eight between them. England remain the only country from this side of the world to lift the William Webb Ellis trophy.

A recent statistic highlighted the fact that 25% of all professionally contracted rugby players hail from one of the Pacific Island countries. That is incredible, given their comparatively low population bases.

It is also a fact that several of the European-based clubs who signed those players over the years did so with an unwritten stipulation that they don’t make themselves available for international duty in order to retain them on their roster when the homegrown internationals are away with the national squad.

Every four years, we get a glimpse of the potential on offer from Fiji in particular but also from Tonga and Samoa at the World Cup. The message to emerge has always been the same. If only they had their best players available, had adequate preparation coupled with a proper Test match programme between tournaments. Prior to their recent test against Wales, Fiji had only played five internationals since the 2019 World Cup. By way of comparison, Ireland had 18.

The recent falloff in standards of Argentina is already a concern for the game. Without a professional side in the southern hemisphere club scene since the watering down of Super Rugby, and with their players once again scattered around the world, their competitiveness on the international stage is being diluted.

Apart from having to operate in a strict Covid environment, the fact that they haven’t played a home international for nearly two years hasn’t helped either. For a proud rugby nation that contested the 2015 World Cup semi-final and finished in the bronze medal spot at the 2007 event, their recent decline must be a worry for World Rugby.

Fiji offered a timely reminder of the scintillating rugby they are capable of producing when they pushed Wales all the way, despite having a man sent off after 24 minutes, in an enthralling game in Cardiff two weeks ago.

Fiji''s Eroni Sau was given a five-match ban after being sent off for a dangerous tackle against Wales. Picture: David Davies.

Their preparation was non-existent with an emergency coaching team, including former Irish captain Rory Best, drafted in as their regular coaching ticket, led by highly impressive former Clermont Auvergne and Scotland coach Vern Cotter, were restricted from travelling due to Covid. They were also without one of the best centres in the game in Semi Radradra, along with several others but despite those setbacks they still rattled the Welsh.

While I was vehemently against the three-year rule — recently extended to five — that allowed players to qualify for their country of residency, this new criteria, while not perfect, has the capacity to be a game-changer for islanders.

All of a sudden a trio of former All Blacks in Charles Piutau, Ngeni Laumapi, and George Moala, none of whom have featured for New Zealand in the last three years, along with controversial former Wallaby Israel Folau, are likely to reemerge on the international stage with Tonga and represent a country with whom they retain massive cultural links as opposed to the marriage of convenience provided by the residency rule.

It has the potential to boost Samoa massively with another cohort of former New Zealand World Cup winners in Julian Savea, Victor Vito, Stephen Luatua, and Charlie Faumuina joining their ranks. Fiji is also set to benefit massively from a fresh injection of international quality players who ended up playing for a raft of countries, including France and England, but are eligible now for repatriation.

Many of the islanders who played for New Zealand and Australia over the years still had family living in the islands but fled the nest in order to take up schools scholarships and qualified for their adopted countries on the basis of residency.

This new ruling offers them the chance to cement their ties with home and add significantly to the competitiveness of their international side. With the addition of two island club teams — Fijian Drua and Maona Pasifika — to next seasons reconfigured Super Rugby tournament, a number of European-based Pacific Island players now have a professional alternative and an incentive to come home, even if it means a reduction in their earning capacity.

This rule change has the potential to be transformative and, two years out from the next World Cup in France, the capacity to change the predictable nature of the pool stages dramatically.

With Samoa likely to be in Ireland’s pool, Andy Farrell will already be musing over the potential implications. Ireland’s long quest to make the semi-final stage for the first time may have just become even more challenging.