Mal Meninga calls for changes to be made to international eligibility rules as players turn their back on Kangaroos
Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga wants international rugby league to thrive but says eligibility rules are a mess.
Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga can understand why players are keen to reach out and learn more about their cultural identity, but he’s called for changes to be made to eligibility rules to “stop the mess” of people switching from one country to the other.
The Immortal has been one of the strongest advocates for growing the game but concedes he’s scared about what might happen in the future if the sport doesn’t adapt to meet the changing multicultural landscape in today’s NRL.
As it stands, players like Jarome Luai, Stephen Crichton and Brian To’o can represent NSW in State of Origin and then play for Samoa at international level because the Pacific nation is considered a tier two team.
On the flip side, someone like Victor Radley can’t represent the Blues despite being born and raised in Sydney because he’s played for England which is a tier-one nation.
But the rules have become a hot topic this month with Payne Haas, Tino Fa’asuamaleaui and Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow considering switching their allegiance from Australia to Samoa in a massive blow ahead of this year’s Ashes series.
Samoa made the last World Cup final, while Tonga reached the Pacific Championships decider in 2024, with both teams set to grow stronger in coming years as more players opt to honour their culture instead of playing for Australia and New Zealand where they grew up.
There has also been a discussion for an Indigenous side to play in the Pacific Championships later this year.
“I fully understand players reaching out and trying to find out about their cultural identity,” the Kangaroos coach said on the Throwdown with Mal Meninga.
“Sixty-odd per cent of NRL players are born in Australia, but there’s a cultural identity that they need to discover.
“I’ve done it myself where I’ve gone on excursions to Tanna Island to discover my dad’s history side of things, so I fully understand it all.
“My frustration comes from (the fact) when I put my hand up to play for Australia, that’s what I wanted to do.
“So you get the honour of putting that jersey on, and then you’re allowed by the eligibility rules to make another decision and move on from that position. That’s the frustrating thing for me.
“We need to look at those eligibility rules and stop the mess, stop the flurry of players going from one nation to the next nation.
“The demographics have changed with our game, so we have to move with the times. They talk about tier criteria, but we all know that those players grew up in New Zealand or Australia and have had the benefit of our systems.”
A number of NRL coaches have called for changes to Origin and international eligibility to make the process clearer, with Meninga fully focused on creating the best environment possible to encourage players to want to play for Australia.
“The frustration has sort of switched over to determination to make sure that I’m not affected by it because I want to do the right thing by the international program,” he said.
“I’m the national coach for the Kangaroos and I want to make sure that regardless of how all the chips fall and where the players make the decision to go to, that we’re going to pick our best Kangaroos side and we’re going to represent Australia with great pride and passion, and we’re going to be successful.
“I can’t control what the players are thinking. There’s a lot of recruitment going on from the Pacific Island nations, and there were some comments overnight around the Indigenous space as well, but I can’t control any of that.
“I’ve got to make sure whatever I do that it’s the best program, the best experience and the best environment for the Australian players.”
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