It is pretty clear that people with Queensland Rugby League want to have their cake and eat it too.
This time around it is Queensland Rugby League chairman Peter Betros and Queensland selection boss Des Morris who have had a nice long whinge to News Limited about South Sydney youngster Luke Keary not being eligible to play for their Maroons team.
They both believe that a rule should be added to the brand new eligibility rules that onto of everything else, you should just be allowed to choose which state you want to play for.
The hilarious part of the article posted on News.com.au is that Sam Thiaday, who was born in New South Wales, believes that Keary should be able to play for Queensland because he was born in Queensland.
Are this lot serious?
So according to Queensland, they should be allowed to choose anyone that was born in Queensland or who played football in Queensland or who just decides they want to play for Queensland.
Let me tell you this….with the amount of money you can earn playing a single game of State Of Origin football, what professional player would say no to even the possibility of earning a call up for either state?
This is why we need rules in place. We need to stop the type of lawless stupidity the Queensland Rugby League is trying to push through. The same organisational that has happily turned it back on true Queensland talent to give maroon jerseys to the worlds Rugby League players since 1995.
After posting yesterday’s article on this issue the overwhelming response from readers on social media is that we need to simplify the State Of Origin eligibility rules. Most people want to see the rules state that you play for the state you were born in and that is it.
A black and white, hard and fast rule that can not be argued with.
Considering that the State Of Origin series makes so much money, and gains national attention as a must see sporting event, why would any administration look to undermine the series on such a consistent basis.
There should be a line in the sand drawn right now for previous players that have been selected. You don’t want to see players swapping teams now that they have turned out for either state under the previous, ridiculous rules.
From 2015 onwards though the ARL should make it very simple. Play for the state you are born in. If they did that the serious would not suffer, we could start really talking about it as a State Of ORIGIN series, and who knows, it might have a knock on effect for international Rugby League that would see those eligibility rules tightened up as well.
It’s just a shame that the Queensland Rugby League seems so focused on profits from series wins that it is willing to turn it’s back on home grown talent so they can sign blow ins from out of their state. They have turned the Maroons into nothing more than just another franchise.
The ARL needs to step in and save Queensland Rugby League from it’s own greedy administrators.
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