The difference is though - The Aussies could quite easily put together a 17 of Australian born/bred/raised/trained players that could beat any team we could muster........in fact they could probably put two or three together!!!

My argument is not with the rules of who plays for the international team.....it's that SDL is still so packed with non British born/bred/raised/trained players, in key positions that we end up with a half-back pairing of Rangi Chase.....and Kevin Sinfield!!!

Tells you everything you need to know about the strength of the British game!!!

England RL team. Every single player and coach other than one born in England

Fans whinge like girls.

England RU team. Manu Tuilagi, Shontayne Hape, Alex Corbisiero, Dylan Hartley, Matt Stevens, Simon Shaw MBE, Joe Simpson, Delon Armitage.

What a joke that game has become.

England Cricket: Andrew Strauss, Kevin Pietersen, Eoin Morgan, Jonathan Trott, Craig Kieswetter, Matt Prior, Michael Lumb, Ben Stokes, Jade Dernbach, Stuart Meaker.

What a joke that game has become.

It does tell me everything I need to know. You have an opinion. That's it. Doesn't tell me anything about the strength of the English game. Just that you have an opinion, I did forget that if you put exclamation marks after a stupid unfounded opinion with absolutely no fact or evidence to support it it makes it valid though!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'd love to see your third string Aussie team that would beat England. Their first teams got non Aussies in it, that's how great they are.

You're quite right Jonny - it is my opinion.

I'll be quite happy to come back on here and humbly beg your apology for having such a ridiculous opinion once we've won the Four Nations.....and will subsequently go out and place a sizable wager on us winning the 2013 World Cup.

It'll be a dead cert.

I'd stop there if i was you pal. Youre beginning to sound just a little bit silly now.

Jonny that's just backing up the "others do it so it's okay" theory. Why can't we have a backbone and be proud of the fact that we'd be a major national side taking a stand against the ridiculous loopholes (and even that is probably being kind to selecting players on residency). As I've said, nowt to do with whinging, being a flatcapper and whatever else but disappointment in seeing yet another of our game's big plus points being sold down the river "because the Aussies do it".

Still looking forward to you naming this high and mighty Aussie 3rd team that would beat England, when their first team can't beat us by more than 10 when we were missing 5 pack members and the Harry Sunderland Trophy winner. 3 of which were injured in the game.

My own opinion when I used to watch International RL was that I would only want those who dreamt as youngsters of playing for that team, who aspired throughout there careers to be good enough so one day they could represent the country they had always dreamed of playing for.

I suppose one way of stopping all this is when a player signs pro forms he has a box on it that states his nationality and eligibilty for Interational RL.
Might stop the International game turning into a club game.

One final point on the International, the amount of people who are talking about these games because its been on Natioanl free to view TV seems far greater than when its on a pay to view channel, something the RFL could build on as its certainly increased awareness in my area of the people I know.

I admire your patriosm, if not realism !

I don't particularly mind the grandparent rule. My problem is people changing nationalities. Once you represent a nation you should wear your national flag under your name on your club top.

Having read all the arguements and discussion about who and who should not play for which country, surely it just begs the question of "What is the point of International RL (or any of the other sports mentiopned , come to that)."
Remember one thing - it isn't particularly about the sport these days - it's about MONEY! What do our "Leaders?" care about the game in general as long as people are prepared to pay to watch, or sponsors are prepared to cough up?

Which is exactly the gripe about Chase, Jonny, as he has been in previous New Zealand training squads and played for the New Zealand Maoris for several years, not to mention playing [iagainst[/i England for the Exiles.

But he hasn't played for a test team.

Maoris and Exiles arn't official tests.

Either way, both games were [iagainst[/i England so I just don't see any situation where it's plausible to play against an international side and then suddenly become that nationality.