NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport / Rugby

<i>Gregor Paul:</i> Foreign invasions hurting English rugby

Gregor Paul
By Gregor Paul
Reporter·Herald on Sunday·
20 Dec, 2008 03:00 PM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Gregor Paul
Opinion by Gregor Paul
Sports writer
Learn more
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

KEY POINTS:

Throughout November there was a sense of England and France being in denial about the true impact of the spending largesse of their respective clubs.

No one wanted to see the link between the growing number of foreign players in the Premiership and Top 14 and the declining
form of the respective English and French national teams.

All Black coach Graham Henry suggested England's longer term prospects would be greatly enhanced by reducing the numbers of New Zealanders playing in the Premiership. That was easily dismissed, though, as the wishful thinking of an All Black coach sick of seeing so many of his best players lured north.

No one seemed to think in the wake of three crushing, consecutive defeats that Henry might just have a point. England were fairly awful throughout November, their one shining light, according to manager Martin Johnson, being the performances of Riki Flutey.

Yes the same Riki Flutey who couldn't hold down a place at the Hurricanes. That's what it has come to for England - picking up the scraps swept from New Zealand's table.

That's because opportunities for English and French players are desperately hard to come by.

Last weekend's Heineken Cup games showed just how much influence foreign players have in Europe now. All 24 teams were in action and almost one third were not eligible for either France, England, Scotland, Ireland, Italy or Wales.

New Zealanders constituted about a quarter of those 134 players ineligible for European teams, Pacific Islanders about a quarter and the remainder were Australians, South Africans, Argentinians and Georgians.

That is a huge number of places to give away to foreign players whose presence blocks local talent.

The numbers need further analysis to really show how detrimental the foreign invasion is to English and French rugby. While around one third of the Heineken Cup players last week were not eligible for any of the Six Nations sides, the numbers of non-English players in Premiership sides is closer to 50 per cent.

Take Gloucester as an example - they had Kiwis Greg Somerville and Willie Walker in their match-day 22 to face Calvisano last week and Pacific Islander Apo Satala. They also had Scottish caps Alasdair Dickinson and Scott and Rory Lawson, Welsh caps Gareth Cooper and Matthew Watkins and Italian internationals Carlos Nieto and Marco Bortolami.

In their 22, only 12 players were eligible for England. The foreign influence stretches deeper into the club as not included in the 22 for various reasons were Scottish lock-loose forward Alistair Strokosch and halfback Ross McMillan, Fijian backrower

Akapusi Qera, Welsh loose forward Gareth Delve and French hooker Olivier Azam.

Of a total first team squad of 38 players, 15 are not eligible to play for England.

Bath, who beat Glasgow 25-19, are another club to have a limited English flavour. In their starting 22 were New Zealanders Joe Maddock and Daniel Browne. South Africa was well represented with Butch James, Pieter Dixon at hooker and Michael Claassens at halfback. There were two Samoans in Eliota Fuimaono and Jonny Fa'amatuainu and two Australians in Shaun Berne and Justin Harrison.

Matt Stevens, a South African eligible on residency, and Michael Lipman, an Australian eligible on residency, were also in the starting XV.

That meant there were nine players not eligible for England in the 22 and like Gloucester, the wider squad is littered with foreign talent. Former Kiwi Shontayne Hape is on the books as is the New Zealand-born but Scottish-qualified Robbie Kydd and Romania's Paulica Ion.

This is the scenario across the league but it is worth looking at one other club - Leicester Tigers, one of the heavyweights of the European scene.

They played Dan Carter's Perpignan last week and in their 22 had Scott Hamilton and Aaron Mauger, South African Marco Wentzel and Fijian Seru Rabeni. They also had two Frenchmen, Julian Dupuy and Benjamin Kayser, and two Irishmen Geordan Murphy and John Murphy.

It's when you dig into the rest of their squad that it becomes alarming - New Zealanders Craig Newby, Ben Herring and Boris Stankovich; South Africans Derrick Hougaard and Ben Pienaar; Argentinians Marcus Ayerza and Santiago Bonorino; Italian Martin Castrogiovanni and Welshman Mefin Davies. That is a total of 17 foreigners in a 40-man squad.

That England can remain in denial about the seriousness of this problem is incredible. Imagine the impact on New Zealand rugby if almost half the Blues, Hurricanes and Crusaders squads were not eligible for the All Blacks.

With most Premiership teams running with squads of 40 players there are, roughly 480 professionals in the league. That compares with New Zealand where there are 140 Super 14 contracts and about 140,000 registered players.

English clubs are giving about 240 contracts to foreign players leaving about the same number for the almost 650,000 registered players.

The balance is all wrong and it is hurting England.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rugby

Premium
Opinion

The rise of Rosmini's 'Horse': Young star gallops to scoring benchmark

07 Jul 09:01 AM
Premium
All Blacks

Is World Rugby targeting the All Blacks with excessive scrutiny?

07 Jul 05:01 AM
All Blacks

All Blacks v France: Read the best Premium analysis

07 Jul 03:48 AM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rugby

Premium
The rise of Rosmini's 'Horse': Young star gallops to scoring benchmark

The rise of Rosmini's 'Horse': Young star gallops to scoring benchmark

07 Jul 09:01 AM

Braden Morley scored 30 points in Rosmini’s 40-7 win over Massey High.

Premium
Is World Rugby targeting the All Blacks with excessive scrutiny?

Is World Rugby targeting the All Blacks with excessive scrutiny?

07 Jul 05:01 AM
All Blacks v France: Read the best Premium analysis

All Blacks v France: Read the best Premium analysis

07 Jul 03:48 AM
All Blacks aim to sharpen finishing ahead of second test

All Blacks aim to sharpen finishing ahead of second test

07 Jul 01:03 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP