The eligibility rule remains the same for the All Blacks.

Guillaume Marion, Media365, published on Wednesday, December 6, 2023 at 5:15 pm.

While some had hoped for a change in the eligibility rule regarding New Zealand selection, the federation confirmed that international players playing abroad would not be able to be selected.

A huge blow for some of the All Blacks players. Indeed, after their generally successful 2023 World Cup (losing the final to South Africa), some members of Ian Foster’s group have since left the country to play in France and Japan in particular. Unfortunately for them, The New Zealand Rugby Union (NZR) has remained tight-lipped on the eligibility rule. As a result, non-New Zealand internationals will not be able to be selected by Foster's successor, Scott Robertson. “We are very clear about our rules and we believe they have played a vital role in the success of the All Blacks for a long time. But we also recognise that the world is changing and from time to time these discussions need to be had. At the moment we are really happy with the situation. “Recently, Mark Robinson, NZR president, reacted to this issue.

Robertson and Kane were hoping for some relief.

While Robertson made it clear that the rule might need to be reconsidered a few months ago, Sam Keane also said he was in favour of a change in the future. “A lot of South Africans have shown that playing in the Japanese league and returning to the top level of international football are not mutually exclusive. So maybe we can raise this issue (with the New Zealand Federation). “, explained among other things the captain of the All Blacks team during the last World Cup, during the press conference he gave in Suntory Sungolia (Japan). If the latter, like Ardie Savea (who signed for a few months with the Kobe Steelers), should not be too affected by this concern, Others who have been in Europe or Japan over the course of several seasons (most notably Lester Vaingaanuku who now plays for Toulon) will be affected by this lack of flexibility.which their union clearly assumes.