Highlanders name team for Chiefs as they look to keep play-off hopes alive

For some reason it’s ‘poaching’ when any other nations do it, but not when the ‘poor islands’ do it, and statistically, they’re right up there with Scotland and Japan in terms of poached players. Not one of these Kiwis and Aussies would go live in the Islands to satisfy any criteria, and I’d say most of them have hardly ever set foot in the islands, outside of a holiday.

They should make the rule that you either have to be born in a nation, or that you’ve spent two-thirds of your life there. That rule would be good for NZ. But then watch the usual sector complain how that unfairly penalizes their national side because they’d lose all their imports. Can’t win.

Kyren Taumoefolau is a NZer. He’s come through all the NZR systems and he wants to play for the All Blacks, so what? The only people making an issue of this are the ones who are always keen to play the victim card. It’s okay for them to poach with rules that are openly designed for them to do so, but heaven forbid a Kiwi or Aussie wants to play for the nation of their birth. Good grief.

It's getting absolutely weakened having to share talent with the two other oval ball games of League and AFL. It gets kiwis over to fill out sides to plug holes.

The limitations with an equitable draft is NZ players aren't eligible to play for the Allblacks from offshore. However on both sides of the Tasman a draft system could be useful.

I don't see any benefit to NZ rugby with all these players representing the islands and other countries but actually living here and taking up spots in our professional NPC and super sides.

The Moana side seems to be being paid for by the NZ taxpayer, money that could be going into NZ rugby.

Rugby's hugely expensive to fund and NZ rugby needs to get back to number one to win back sponsors, it won't do so giving everyone else a lot of it's best players.

Fiji is a viable rugby nation with it's sides talent overwhelmingly coming from Fiji, Tonga and Samoa should have to do the same.

I fully understand this idea that NZ should support the islands but I'm not seeing the benefits for NZ just more player drain.

The real problem though is the top NZ talent being poached by England, Wales, France, Japan, Scotland, Ireland. That's genuinely disgraceful.

You’re making no sense CO. Trying to jump on the wrong example?

I’m also with Mil’s on the other, there are some very good Kiwis playing for the Aussie sides even now, who would be great to poach back. Kalani Thomas, Gamble, Murray reminds me very much of Shaun Stevenson. All these guys, and others, have the potential to explode and warrant a AB jersey.