Club Over Country

During the Southern Hemisphere spring, the Wallabies have a tour throughout Britain, but it has been thrown into disarray.

Quade Cooper, Samu Kerevi and Sean McMahon, a star trio within the Wallabies, have decided to withdraw from the squad. They chose to leave the tour to re-join their respective Japanese League One clubs. The Australian Rugby Association is furious over the players’ decision.

The star trio was added to the squad after the Wallabies were thrashed by the All Blacks in the Bledisloe Cup test series. The three were added to the team in preparation for the Rugby Championship test series between Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Argentina. Cooper and Kerevi were important players during the Wallabies’ test matches against South Africa and Argentina, and the more recent test match against Japan. With the inclusion of these two players, the Wallabies won five matches in a row. Due to their efforts during the test matches, coach Dave Rennie decided that they would be an integral part of the team for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France. With this in mind, he was keen for the pair to participate in the autumn international test matches in Europe.

The problem is that although Cooper and Kerevi are contracted to Rugby Australia, they never signed up to participate in the European leg. Their decision to forgo playing in Britain was not forced, and some say that the Japanese clubs even encouraged them to play in Britain. Rugby enthusiasts feel that the two players have betrayed their country, but neither Rugby Australia nor the Japanese clubs have been able to force these two essential team members to reverse their decision.

Further reading: The Guardian Rugby Australia left with mess to clear up after withdrawal of Wallabies trio

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