FP – The International Rugby Board insist they were ready to prevent exploitation of their regulations that could allow the likes of Wallabies legend George Smith turning out for Tonga at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.
The IRB say they will act to prevent a flood of players switching national allegiance in order to compete at the inaugural sevens tournament at the Olympics.
Changes to eligibility rules mean a player can represent a country provided they have the correct passport and have not been capped by another team for 18 months.
An appearance in just one Olympic qualification event could lead to a player being selected for that nation’s 15-a-side team even though the IRB is trying to reduce the number of ‘dual internationals’.
Smith is believed to be interested in nominating for a switch to Tonga for the Olympics, while Sydney-born Tongan backrower Steve Mafi wants to put his hand up to represent Australia.
England’s Steffon Armitage, the European player of the year and a star back-row forward with French and European champions Toulon, is reportedly considering his options with France for the 2015 World Cup due to England’s refusal to pick anyone playing club rugby union overseas.
But IRB chief executive Brett Gosper, speaking in London on Tuesday, said the global governing body was aware of the potential pitfalls.
“There is a regulations committee that will look at all applications for transfer and they will look to see if it’s for bona fide sevens reasons,” Gosper explained.
“There is a safety net and any transfer will have to be passed by the committee. They will act according to the spirit of the law.
“For example, if we have huge props applying for a career in sevens, then we’ll smell a rat.
“That’s an obvious example and there will be some cases that are in a grey area, but we want to ensure the integrity of the regulation and the spirit behind it is upheld.
“Any obvious abuses that go counter to that spirit of why we’re doing this will be caught in the regulations committee net.
“But players will move in both codes by coming into the sevens game — that will happen.”
