About 10 years ago I postulated that players in the top tier of rugby nations should be able to play for a second tier nation if the first country they played for had no objection, and if they otherwise qualified for the second tier nation.
It shouldn't work the other way around.
I posted that several times in different rugby forums since that time.
That should be the only exception to the IRB regulation which was made in about 2000 said I.
The question arose as to what was a first or second-tier nation but that was just fine print that could be worked out.
You could even change the concept to distinguish between those countries who play in the RC or in 6N - and those that don't.
That doesn't cover a player who wants to change between countries in the same category, but I still think that is the way to go.
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Great point LG and the IRB already has mechanisms in place to distinguish the target nations. They use a combination of bands and the tier system. So while New Zealand, Australia, England etc. might be in the same band (high performance) as Samoa, Fiji etc. Tier 1 is defined as only those high performance nations in TRC and the 6Ns.
The IRB could even go a step further and apply the same good sense that you are talking between Tier 2 and Tier 3 nations or cascade it down the bands from Tier 1 -> Tier 2 -> Performance -> Targeted -> Development.
That kind of cascade would really help with the development of teams outside of those who regularly appear at RWCs. Players who've played at a higher level of the game can really inspire the players around them and change the whole mindset. The pay-off is rarely immediate, but having a guy who's played in the RWC or Pacific Cup can really inspire others to want to achieve that.
It might not mean that the guys he's playing with suddenly become so much better that they qualify for their first RWC. However it could be that they inspire others to want to strive to see their country in the RWC. Someone he plays with might end up being the coach that leads their country to their first RWC.
Sometimes I think that we, as the privileged few from Tier 1 nations, spend so much time looking down to other nations that we forget that all the way down the bottom of the pyramid their are nations looking up. Many of their goals are things that we take for granted but achieving them aren't any less special because of that.
I'm glad the rugby community has guys like you around who can be a sensible voice for change that helps the smaller nations rather than always suiting the big unions and clubs.
