O'Reilly in Japanese Rugby World Cup Team!!

[NS Herald]

Just seen the team below that played yesterday for Japan v USA

Japan: Aruga; Loamanu, Imamura, Onishi, Endo; Robins, Yoshida; Nishiura, Matsubara, Soma, Ono, Thompson, Makiri, O'Reilly, Miuchi (capt).
Replacements: Inokuchi, Yamamura, Kumagae, Asano, Yatomi, Taira, Onozawa.

How the fcuk do Robins, Thompson, Makin and O'Reilly get to play for the nips

 

[Cian]

Don't some RFUs have extremely lax eligibility rules, hence half the south pacific playing for New Zealand?

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

A couple of Kiwis play for Japan and Italy too

 

[Man of Harveys]

I have a very nice Japanese contact called Mr Ohara. But now I'm wondering if it might be spelt O'Hara.

 

[Monkster]

Don't some RFUs have extremely lax eligibility rules, hence half the south pacific playing for New Zealand?

Qualify through residency, however they are so lax about eligibilty that players such as Inge Tuingemala did play Test Rugby for both Western Samoa & New Zealand.......lots of All Blacks did the same in the 90's when they played for the Japanese test team when they were developing the game .....

 

[Grendel]

Don't some RFUs have extremely lax eligibility rules, hence half the south pacific playing for New Zealand?

International eligibility is governed by the IRB rather than individual RFUs. They are, however, somewhat lax. One of the following three conditions has to be met in order to be eligible to represent a country at international level:

1) Being born in that country
2) A parent or grandparent being born in that country
3) Completing a 36 consecutive month period of residency in that country immeidately prior to the time of playing.

Further to Monksters post, as of 2000, you can no longer represent two different unions at international or "A" level.

If anyone is really that interested in the full regulations, you can find them here: http://www.irb.com/mm/document/lawsregs/0/060924gfirbregulation8_883.pdf

 

[Fixtures]

A rather stupid thread that completely ignores the fact that many England teams have used players with names that don't 'sound English' - Mascarenhas, Panesar, Bopara, Mahmood, Onuoha, Agbonlahor, Cueto, Dallaglio anyone?

Wake up, it's a small world these days.

 

[Grendel]

A rather stupid thread that completely ignores the fact that many England teams have used players with names that don't 'sound English'

I thought it was a perfectly reasonable question, personally.