Too Many Fill-in Expats In Nz Team - So The Kiwis Tag Goes
Sun Herald
Sunday May 14, 2006
NEW Zealand Rugby League will ditch the "Kiwis" tag for the national team playing Great Britain next month in England - which could foreshadow a move to downgrade the Anzac Test next year.
The NZRL wants to reserve the name "Kiwis" for the strongest possible selections. Mainly northern hemisphere-based players will take the field against Great Britain at St Helens, so the league is ruling out the use of the popular nickname. Some leading NZRL figures argue that because Super League fixtures deny them several of their first-choice players for the Anzac Test, that should also be reduced in status.Asked if that would be a good move, cautious coach Brian McClennan said: "It should only be the Kiwis when we can select all our players. That's always how it should be." The June 28 match has been devalued by the news that Super League will not stand down New Zealand players from fixtures on the weekend before the game, meaning several players will have to cope with two games in four days. "That is up to the English," NZRL chairman Selwyn Bennett said. "We thought they had cleared it, but apparently they hadn't." That means Stacey Jones will play for the Catalans Dragons and Jason Cayless for St Helens less than 72 hours before the Test kicks off.McClennan wants the Great Britain game to remain on the schedule next year, but for it to be played on a weekend and with NRL players available for selection. The British say they will schedule a clear weekend in Super League next year. He believes his players need the extra fixture if they are to adapt to the intensity of Tests against Australia and improve their win ratio against the Kangaroos."New Zealand should be playing Great Britain as often as possible to give us matches of the intensity that State of Origin gives the Australians," he said. "We should play this game on a weekend next year, so the NRL guys would miss only one match. The Australian players miss a club match to play State of Origin, so why shouldn't our players do that, too?" It is understood several leading Kiwi players asked their NRL clubs for releases, but were turned down.New Zealand will pick a handful of development players in the key positions of fullback, halfback, five-eighth (Parramatta's Jeremy Smith) and hooker (Bulldog Billy Ngawini) to accompany McClennan from the southern hemisphere. Parramatta have the bye the weekend before the game and are comfortable about releasing their New Zealand players, which could mean props Nathan Cayless and Fuifui Moimoi also join the team. "The gap between the lower grades and the NRL has just become too big for these guys to make the step up easily," McClennan said. "If some of them can get experience in this match it could help them step up to NRL squads. "We need to do it for our own protection. If we have an injury to Brent Webb, what do we do? We have no other fullbacks eligible." New Zealand will not select older Super League-based players who have no chance of pressing for Tri-Nations selection this year. "It will be a development match," McClennan said. "It's an exercise in getting ready for the Tri-Nations, not an exercise on the scoreboard."
© 2006 Sun Herald