I'm not saying it's right, I'm saying that it's in the rules, so why not take advantage? I'm afraid that we're going to have to agree to disagree on this one.

To quote George Whitebread

'But he'll never play fa Yarkshire..........No offence'

Unfortunately (right or wrong) it makes the sport a bit of a joke to outsiders!

Fact is, their are only 2 teams challenging in the international arena and that is NZ and Aus.
Allowing England to play players from Aus or NZ will (in the eyes of the powers that be) hopefully allow England to challenge them two.

It is a quick fix solution though that is to the detriment of the sport both in the fact that young English players miss out and that to non RL fans watching the games we look a bit of a joke.

Not the case, RU simply accept it because all the home nations have been doing it for years.

I've no probs disagreeing with you Teesside, we agree on many issues.

It's all this "it's in the rules" business (that everyone including ourselves, bend to suit themselves) that irks me.

If a club is allowed to have 5 overseas players per season, that's all it should be, not 5 PLUS someone who's been here for 6 seasons, someone who's got a Scottish granny, someone who has Polish ancestory (i.e.European restriction of trade). To me, this stinks...and we (Warrington) do it as much as the next club.

No wonder we've not won a Test series in my lifetime v Australia, if our domestic sides are "chockablock full" of over the hill/not good enough Australians.

This is only my opinion, but, if we want to compete with the Aussies, we seriously need to limit the amount of players coming over to our shores, taking up squad places, and taking back a wheelbarrow full of doshback home, after a couple of years, in the process.

We must lose plenty of U20'S who get disillusioned with the game, after being shoved down the pecking order, to accomodate a late 20's Aussie underachiever, simply because the club has an untaken overseas spot to fill. They don't all get snapped up by other clubs. There are such things as late developers in RL. Kevin Ward, anyone.
To think, we may have lost Gaz Carvell to this (luckily, we didn't). He was hardly outstanding in his early years at Leeds/Hull, but, his game has improved no end, in the last 2 years. If he hadn't 'stuck at it', he could easily have thought.."#### it, here's another Aussie coming to take my place, #### RL, I'll go and do something else"

Good post Lefty. Although we disagree on the Chase situation, we certainly appear to agree on the Overseas players rules. You're also right about Gaz Carvell. I watched him in Gateshead's SL season and at 19-20 he wasn't a lot to write home about. I'd say he only came into his best form at 29, a long apprenticeship. Although I believe that we should take advantage of the rules as they are, I also believe that each club should have no more than 5 overseas players full stop. It currently isn't worth HKR fielding an U20 team, they've got 10 overseas players with possibly 1 more to come.

Another reason for me and probably others not to watch international RL

why hes as english as lennox lewis, owen hargreves, greg rusedski, kevin pieterson.......oh wait........they arent are they?.....oh well lol

on a more serious note its not something i agree with, playing for your country is something you're born into you cant pick and choose which nation suits you

Lennox Lewis - Born in West Ham.

Owen Hargreaves - Welsh Mother / English Father

Greg Rusedski - English Mother

Kevin Pieterson - English Mother

Rangi Chase....er.....lived in Cas for a few years and has an english gf.

He qualifies on residency... So after 3 years with Cas? Why don't we get Michael Monaghan in then? He surely must qualify too?

Because if he's as proud an aussie as i suspect he is he would respectfully decline

A Monaghan/Roby interchange although awesome would make me even more miffed.

Who'd of thought the Exiles game was just a better version of Lanc/Yorks with all the players available for England selection?

]

Hansen n lulu at Wigan are classed as English under the quota rules and both have played international rugby for New Zealand so absolutely nothing surprises me !
Pat Richards is Irish as well it's all BOLLOX !
England RU are no different tuilangi Hape just to name 2

I'm not picking and may be wrong but I think lewis boxed for canada. So that would make him canadian (unless he changed when he went proffesional) but I don"t think there is prop boxing nationality tourneys!