New zealand after robbie

[DaNnY jOnEs]

Kiwis league star Robbie Paul is on the All Blacks most wanted list."

All Blacks attack coach Wayne Smith will suggest the NZRU pursue the 23 test Kiwi when he meets fellow coaches Graham Henry and Steve Hansen in England this week.
Smith said " We should be looking at league players as well.
"New Zealand rugby has to be innovative in where we look for players. And there are plenty of New Zealanders starring in England.
League has a few players who could change codes," Smith told sunday news.
Paul's Bradford team mates Tevita Vaikona,Shontayne Hape and Lesley Vainikolo were all possibilities.
Paul,28 who played rugby for Harlequins in 1996, is contracted to Bradford until 2006.
But He said he would consider a switch.
"You can't grow up in New Zealand and not want to be an All Black," he said.
"recruiting from league is overdue.
"the traditionalists shouldn't be afraid of it."

[the grinch]

it wont be long before there is only one code it wont be league or union it will just be called "rugby" i dont like the idea any more than you but it inevitable

[Fraggle]

DaNnY jOnEs posted:
Kiwis league star Robbie Paul is on the All Blacks most wanted list."

Can you post links or the URL to your stories when quoting stuff like this please? It'll help keep the lawyers quiet when they go looking for copyrighted material.

As for this story, and your other post about Union poaching League players, it's happened in both directions over the years but we've not exactly seen a mass of league players wanting to defect. Robinson had won everything there was to win in League except a test series (and like many of us he wasn't alive the last time GB achieved that feat!) or a World Cup so I can't blame him for looking for something new. Henry Paul grew up playing union IIRC and seems to be confused as to which nationality he wants to be, but he's hardly a big star, and the rumours about Spotty Harris returning to league refuse to go away, so ineffective has he been in the other code. I'm not too worried about the likes of Robbie going, if it's one or two players a year then so what? If there was no movement between the codes then the likes of a certain William Boston would never have graced the Cherry and White, and that really would have been a shame.

[Mike]

This could be a good thing for wigan anyway. Even if robbie stays at bradford, with his NZ mates, the bulls will have to give them substantially increased contracts to keep them from leaving. This could get bradford in salary cap trouble, just like we faced after the NRL vs Super League battle and later RU recruitment drive.