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International

New Zealand just needs to look at the NPC to change eligibility laws

By Hamish Bidwell

4 days ago

Ardie Savea and Scott Barrett of the All Blacks look on during the International Test Match between New Zealand All Blacks and England at Eden Park on July 13, 2024 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)

I’m the last person to do something just because everyone else is.

If I’m in a room with 10 other people who swear something is black, I’ll inevitably mount an argument that it’s white.

But when I see Rugby Australia suggesting they’ll go the way of SA Rugby and happily pick players from overseas, I can’t help feeling it’s time New Zealand Rugby (NZR) followed suit.

All Black legend Carlos Spencer on Rugby Champs for the women’s game

Australia doesn’t boast the same talent pool as New Zealand and it’s just not economically viable for all the elite Springboks to represent teams at home, so I concede we’re maybe not talking apples and apples here.

However, it’s not like Jordie Barrett is in the All Blacks on the back of a stellar 2025 Super Rugby Pacific season or that Ardie Savea’s isn’t going to be picked from Japan next year.

By hook or by crook, NZR has justified selecting All Blacks from offshore sabbaticals for years now.

A couple of things caught my eye in the last week or so, regarding this country’s depth of talent.

The first was the selection of the All Blacks’ Rugby Championship squad, which contained any number of players picked above their station, as well as comments from NZR’s general manager of community rugby Steve Lancaster.

He was speaking on the topic of the NPC, with the clue as to why he was chosen as NZR’s spokesman clear from his job title.

Provincial footy is a community-level product now, as Lancaster himself indicated. In selling the competition to the public, Lancaster said the beauty of the NPC is that it enables fans to see players from local schools and clubs represent their province.

If that’s at suburban grounds, such as the Northern United Rugby Football Club’s home at Porirua Park, so much the better.

It’s nice that some fringe All Blacks got some NPC footy last week or that lock Sam Darry is making his return from injury in Canterbury colours. But, as All Blacks coach Scott Robertson noted this week, that’s purely for conditioning purposes.

No-one’s pretending this is high performance rugby anymore.

And that’s fine. It really is. It’s just that, even if the salary cap for NPC teams is reduced to $840,000, it’s still a pretty pricey community asset.

Mind you, that’s a mere drop in the bucket when those summoned as injury cover for the All Blacks almost outnumber the actual number of fit players in the squad.

There’s a few All Blacks that wouldn’t get out of bed for $840,000. At least not without lucrative sabbatical clauses in their contract.

Guys miss Super Rugby campaigns, as we all know. Heck, All Blacks captain Scott Barrett is sitting out next year’s one.

The NPC doesn’t appear as if it’s now a meaningful part of the pathway to test rugby, so what are we waiting for or protecting by pretending you have to play in New Zealand to be selected in the All Blacks?

Not playing for the Waratahs has really stunted Will Skelton’s growth as a rugby player, hasn’t it?

Look, I’m sure NZR has its reasons for sticking with the established eligibility criteria. But situations change, they evolve and what made sense yesterday maybe isn’t the best idea today.

Good on Rugby Australia for altering its stance. I’d encourage NZR to do the same.

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Comments

35 Comments

Over the sideline 3 days ago

Seems we need to look at the NPC for decent rugby writers too.

DC 3 days ago

nojust encourage players to come home and play npc first leaster back in npc richies coming home next year toplay npc

MR 3 days ago

This is the same clown that just last week said he wants the All Blacks to lose because he didn’t like the selections. He then profers that NPC is worthless because the quality is barely above club level and that our better players should go overseas . Well Hamish, shall we put it to a vote?. Should we watch our best players at home or should we let other countries watch them in their comps? The games last week were just awesome and the reason players like Carter got in. Please chose another vacation- you’re substandard, poor and ridiculous

frandinand 3 days ago

One of the reasons I stopped reading The Roar was because their commentators were all of Bidwells standard

AND now he turns up here.

At least the number of comments he gets shows up what most people think of him

Time for him to think of another career

CG 3 days ago

NPC is the most exciting rugby out there

I would rather scrap Super Rugby and just have NPC

It is real blokes from the area playing for fun

Dumbo Bidders gets the wrong end of the stick again

SC 3 days ago

NPC is a wonderful semi-professional development competition that gives opportunity to club players and SRP academy players to compete against Super Rugby players below All Black level and earn a full professional contract.

As long as you understand this is the role of the NPC then you will enjoy it as I do.

The only change I would make to NPC is that players only be allowed to play for the province they played their secondary school rugby in to promote tribalism and to prevent NPC teams from overspending on SRP players from outside their province.

Lima Sopoaga should be playing for Wellington not Waikato.

JW 3 days ago

Not quite, it needs to be understood this is still a path to the All Blacks.

This is maybe what you had in mind when you say “earn a pro contract”? It’s the path that Karl, Tele’a, Preston, etc have taken into the All Blacks. Their first goal of course just to go pro.

I think you’re better off with a more intricate loyalty system and salary cap for that. Limiting by school is cool, but far too restrictive on the individuals themselves. It would basically mean a big group of amateurs that wouldn’t qualify to play NPC. Most simplest fix to your idea is say they can qualify if they’ve earn a blazer, through playing non NPC matches fir the province etc.

Lima lives in Waikato, it’s the only reason he’s there. A system would not want to punish the player, just ensure that the province isn’t doing this with their whole team on purpose. Sure, it means that the NPC is not a true representation of how good each province is, but theres a hundred other concepts which prevent that from being happening as well, not just who a player is playing for. You could go as far as to say only people born in the province are allowed into the ground to cheer on their team if that’s your angle.

CP 3 days ago

As someone from the northern hemisphere, what you have in the NPC is an excellent development tool for young aspiring players. It allows these guys to play up to a level they’ve not experienced. See how you train in the gym, on the training paddock and learn how you react to situations on a pitch. All the things you get from these experienced players. If you have a poorer competition by letting players play overseas, then your competition standards drop.

JW 3 days ago

Yep back in the day as a youngster (before you could get really stuck in yourself playing) you were waiting for NPC to start, buy you’d also go down to the club and see the likes of Joeli or Jonah running around with the boys. Small towns 5-10-15k would have hundreds and thousands down at the local club games sometimes, when teams lined up with lots of provincial players. It used to be a great boon to clubs and fans, then SR came along.

So now that immersion takes place only for the club player than can make it into his province, with general a handful or SR players also being involved at least. Not quite as accessible to everyone, but plays out on the screens at least. It was a big reason given for guys quitting the game when that interaction was removed from club rugby.

Nickers 3 days ago

As always - name all of the players in the history of professional rugby who would have been selected for the All Blacks from abroad. Nick Evans, Carl Hayman, Richie Mo’unga. Maybe Piutau but it’s not like right wing is a problem area for NZ rugby.

People love banging on about this, but the reality is that the current system works extremely well to keep the best players in NZ.

NZR definitely make life unnecessarily difficult with stupid eligibility rules once players are back in the country. Bureaucrats wanting to follow rules for the sake of rules and missing the big picture of putting the best team out on the field. Playing 1 NPC game doesn’t make anyone more ready to play for the ABs, and doesn’t strengthen NZ rugby long term. It just puts a silly barrier in the way of elite players returning to NZ.

JW 3 days ago

Hmm, I didn’t find it surprising (but I did see it as amusing lol) where in Nick Bishops recent article asking for overseas selection, upon the news that RA can select from anywhere and excited fan asks who he thinks would be worth looking at, and the answer was only Josh Kemeny and James Ramm, oh and Paisami?

Not exactly names that are going to have any relevance to such an euphoric occasion lol

CP 3 days ago

I think he’s maybe alluding to the half-backs being called up. Would Aaron Smith (who was apparently in camp) have been a better option than Kyle Preston or Finlay Christie?

RC 3 days ago

Just wait, the collapse of SA rugby is going to happen because of the off shore policy. Just wait. They'll look back at 2017 and say “jeez, 7th in the world was pretty good”

Mark my words.

Hammer Head 2 days ago

Lol. What a poophol comment. Baseless and delusional.

Hellhound 3 days ago

Yeah that changed the game so much badly for the Boks. Don't be glib. It's exactly because of that eligibility changes that the Boks became the double WC champs and the best in the world. They can actually choose the best players to play for the Boks, no matter where they are plying their trade. That's why they are 4 deep in every position talent wise. Besides that, it allows the players to grow and learn and become better under different coaches. It allows them to earn a lot of money and make rugby a professional career without having to worry how they are going to pay for their houses and families and debt worries etc. Everything they learn, they bring back to SA, helping the younger generation grow and learn. It's why Rassie is miles ahead of every other coach. As much as players want to play for their country, guess what? They will always put family first. That is why the players will go where who ever pays them the most. SA can't afford their Bok stars, but other clubs world wide can and they employ those stars. They get small change from SARU compared to what clubs and endorsement deals pay them. The players that plays for the Boks do it out of national pride and they play for more than just money. It's why they are the best. It's why they don't have a best player in each position. It's why it's a team effort and all players but into that ideology. It's why the Boks are so successful. Look at the RFU in England. Look at Wales and others. Always the same problems. Money. Players leaving because of funds not caring if that affects their eligibility to play for their country. SA is currently getting raided for its talent. Not just some of the older players, but especially the young stars. Eligibility is strangling careers of players. Especially those who wants to play for their country as they are stuck earning peanuts. With SA, these players earn Mega. Why? They are not restricted by where they play. The Currie Cup is a small competition that doesn't have space for more players. In the world of rugby however, there is thousand of clubs where they can go ahead and make a name for themselves. Instead of being stuck behind a player for years and effectively destroying their own chances of representing their country. There is so many Bok players who was never in the Bok planning. That wasn't even known. Players who made a name for themselves elsewhere and became Boks where they never would have. Eligibility is only hurting the players and once they realise that, they always leave for green pastures despite it costing them a possible Test cap.

GrahamVF 3 days ago

Well you can’t stay on top forever - ask the All Blacks.

SK 3 days ago

NPC is as good as any second tier comp going around. It does allow more players to get noticed and gives them time to play with some seasoned professionals but just like the Currie Cup in SA it is a shadow of its former self. If the AB’s opened up their selection policy how many would leave? I would guess 15 to 20 of the top players in the country would be gone in 2 years. Some players would also return to offset the loss. Also many other elite players would leave as well, perhaps even 1 or 2 fringe players. Eventually the situation would stabilise with players coming and going but Super Rugby would be diminished. For the Boks the situation is different. Playing on Europe means they still have access to strong competition. Those players who leave often play in those same comps in Europe. Those who are elite often end up in Japan where SA may as well have a Rugby Embassy. If Super Rugby diminishes that affects the whole product. Fans may not like it and the comp will not be good prep for Int rugby. Super Rugby was better this year and as long as it's improving the selection policy should stay.

Hellhound 3 days ago

Super Rugby is not nearly as strong and good as it was. It needs to add teams from Argentina or SA. The current model doesn't work anymore. It's still a good competition, but also a former shadow of itself.

BA 3 days ago

NPC quality is great

TokoRFC 3 days ago

Thank-you BA!

I reckon NPC is underrated quality wise, all blacks look very good in NPC but they aren’t unplayable. If we undermine the NPC what else is going to develop our young talent and provide leadership opportunities for developing Super Rugby players?

Also where does everyone think the fantastic kiwi coaches learn their trade? Not to mention how it gathers support for rugby in the regions Super teams can’t be bothered hosting games…

JW 4 days ago

There’s no intelligence in this article Hamish, but I guess you know that?

What I have said in past articles of this type is that NZR/ABs should have a depth roster of 4/5/6 places for each position, and the two of those are overseas places, with a tiered contract system. SR teams themselves fill out the remaining players for their squads.

That’s upto 30 odd places (hell even include two utility slots, one forward and one back, for 34 places), of the top <100 odd players, able to be on big overseas contracts. You fall off the list after 3 years, even if you don’t return, and that allows someone else to leave and remain on the teir list and eligible to be selected still. I think this number would fit brilliantly with the current flow of talent coming through the system.

Bare in mind this isn’t allowing 30 to leave, the majority would already be taken up by overseas players, with the likes of Retallick and Aaron Smith etc, still able to command spots inside those 5 or 6 players. A half back listing for instance could go something like Roigard/Smith/Ratima/Weber/Hotham /TKB/Preston/Christie etc. It just gives Razor the options he was after last year say, would keep players like Whitelock playing for Pau just for the chance he might be needed for the All Blacks again etc.

Over the sideline 4 days ago

Geez… haters gotta hate I suppose. There is a certain kind of sadness that makes a person so angry when his country does well under a policy he hates.

JW 4 days ago

Oh, thought you were talking about his hate for NPC lol

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