Grannygate
Encyclopedia
Grannygate is the name given to two different sporting scandals regarding eligibility of players for international matches. The rugby union
version of Grannygate occurred in Wales in March 2000. The rugby league
version occurred in New Zealand in 2006.
(IRB) allow players to qualify to play for a country based on their parents' or grandparents' country of birth. Alternatively a player can qualify based on residency in a country for a defined number of years, or through marriage
.
The players involved in Grannygate were:
Three other Welsh players were initially implicated but exonerated as they had valid Welsh qualifications and had not played for other countries: Australian Jason Jones-Hughes
, New Zealander Matt Cardey
and English-born Peter Rogers who had played rugby union in South Africa
.
The IRB later changed the eligibility rules so that a player could only play for one country. This led to problems with the Pacific Islanders
and the All Blacks
, who had previously treated one another's players as interchangeable. New Zealander Stephen Bachop
, for example, played for Samoa
in the 1991 Rugby World Cup
before becoming an All Black, but later switched back to Samoa. Similarly his brother Graeme Bachop
represented New Zealand and later Japan
. The brothers played against each other in the 1991 Rugby World Cup. Since these events, Sitiveni Sivivatu
and Sione Lauaki
both played for the Pacific Islanders side but later went on to play for the New Zealand national rugby team as playing for the Islanders did not require a player to commit his international future to one of the 5 sides which make up the Pacific Islanders.
In late 2010 it was proposed by the New Zealand Rugby Union that former test players be allowed to play for their country of heritage. This would have allowed players like Jerry Collins
to turn out for their countries of birth but the move was rejected by the IRB.
for New Zealand
in the 2006 Rugby League Tri-Nations
, despite not being qualified to do so. Fien had played State of Origin
for the Queensland Maroons in 2001 but was seeking permission to play for the Kiwis
in the second game of the 2006 Tri-Nations. Fien claimed eligibility based on the grandparent rule. Fien played in the losing Kiwi team in Melbourne
and in the winning Kiwi team against the Lions
in New Zealand. He was later banned after The Daily Telegraph
in Sydney
revealed that Fien was claiming elibility based upon a great-grandmother and not a grandmother. A further consequence was that the Kiwis were forced to forfeit the two competitions points gained for the victory against the Lions which further hampered the Kiwis' efforts to make the final. Fien became eligible to play for the Kiwis in 2007 due to residency rules via his tenure with the Auckland Warriors in the NRL.
The effect of the incident on international rugby league was a public slanging match between the Australian Rugby League
(ARL) and the New Zealand Rugby League
(NZRL). Selwyn Bennett, the chairman of the NZRL, resigned over the incident and two weeks later Andrew Chalmers announced that he would also leave his job with a year still to run on his contract. Graham Lowe, a former Kiwi coach, tabled a failed bid to have the whole NZRL replaced. Bennett has since claimed that the incident was good for international rugby league, accusing ARL chief executive, Geoff Carr
, of knowing about Fien's ineigibility before it was revealed publicly. Bennett said: "Not only Geoff Carr but the secretary at the ARL Colin Love
looked into it. The only one who didn't know anything seemed to be me."
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
version of Grannygate occurred in Wales in March 2000. The rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
version occurred in New Zealand in 2006.
Rugby union
In rugby union, Grannygate was a scandal over the eligibility of international players which occurred in March 2000. The rules of the International Rugby BoardInternational Rugby Board
The International Rugby Board is the governing body for the sport of rugby union. It was founded in 1886 as the International Rugby Football Board by the unions of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. England refused to join until 1890. The International Rugby Football Board changed its name to the...
(IRB) allow players to qualify to play for a country based on their parents' or grandparents' country of birth. Alternatively a player can qualify based on residency in a country for a defined number of years, or through marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
.
The players involved in Grannygate were:
- Shane HowarthShane HowarthShane Paul Howarth is a New Zealand born former international rugby union player who gained four caps and scored 54 points for the All Blacks before later switching allegiance to Wales, attaining 19 Welsh caps....
, former New ZealandAll BlacksThe New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
international who gained 19 caps for WalesWales national rugby union teamThe Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
before being banned as he had no Welsh qualification. - Brett SinkinsonBrett SinkinsonBrett David Sinkinson is a New Zealand born rugby union player who played for the Wales national rugby union team. A flanker, he was known for his mobility and hard tackling...
, New Zealand born flanker (though he never played for New Zealand) who played for Wales whilst ineligible. He was barred from playing for Wales but later returned to the Wales team after legally qualifying through the residency rules and achieving a total of 20 caps. - David Hilton, born in BristolBristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
(though he never played for England) claimed Scottish qualification through his grandmother. He played 41 times for Scotland before it was revealed his grandmother was born in England and he was therefore ineligible to play for Scotland. He never played international rugby again.
Three other Welsh players were initially implicated but exonerated as they had valid Welsh qualifications and had not played for other countries: Australian Jason Jones-Hughes
Jason Jones-Hughes
Jason Jones-Hughes is an Australian born rugby union player who played for the Wales national rugby union team. The fact that he represented Wales caused friction between the two national rugby unions as he had played for the Australian Barbarians and was part of the Australian team that toured...
, New Zealander Matt Cardey
Matt Cardey
Matthew Dane Cardey is a New Zealand born former international rugby union fullback who played for the Wales national rugby union team....
and English-born Peter Rogers who had played rugby union in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
The IRB later changed the eligibility rules so that a player could only play for one country. This led to problems with the Pacific Islanders
Pacific Islanders rugby union team
The Pacific Islanders rugby union team is an international rugby union team, started in 2004, that represents Fiji, Samoa and Tonga. While Niue and the Cook Islands are not members of the Pacific Tri-Nations competition, they did supply players to the squad for the Pacific Islanders' tour in 2004...
and the All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
, who had previously treated one another's players as interchangeable. New Zealander Stephen Bachop
Stephen Bachop
Stephen Bachop is a former rugby player from New Zealand. He is the older brother of fellow All Black Graeme Bachop.-Provincial:...
, for example, played for Samoa
Samoa national rugby union team
The Manu Samoa is the men's representative side of the Samoa Rugby Union in both the 15's and the 7's for international competitions. The Samoa Rugby Union is owned by the affiliated rugby unions of Samoa. In Samoa, Manu Samoa is in honour of a famous Samoan warrior. From 1924 to 1997 Samoa was...
in the 1991 Rugby World Cup
1991 Rugby World Cup
The 1991 Rugby World Cup was the second edition of the Rugby World Cup, and was jointly hosted by England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and France; at that time, the five European countries that participated in the Five Nations Championship making it the first Rugby World Cup to be staged in the...
before becoming an All Black, but later switched back to Samoa. Similarly his brother Graeme Bachop
Graeme Bachop
Graeme Bachop is a former rugby player from New Zealand of Samoan,Tahitian and Cook Islands Heritage.He played for the Linwood Rugby club for ten years followed by four years at Christchurch High School Old Boys. His move to HSOB allowed him to develop a combination with first five-eighths Andrew...
represented New Zealand and later Japan
Japan national rugby union team
The Japan national rugby union team represent Japan in international rugby union competitions. Japan is traditionally the strongest rugby union power in Asia but has both enjoyed and endured mixed results against non-Asian teams over the years...
. The brothers played against each other in the 1991 Rugby World Cup. Since these events, Sitiveni Sivivatu
Sitiveni Sivivatu
Sitiveni Waica Sivivatu is a New Zealand rugby union footballer, playing on the position of a wing. He was largely successful in the 2005 Super 12 season playing for the Chiefs, and acquired a starting position in the All Blacks. He has scored 29 tries in 45 tests...
and Sione Lauaki
Sione Lauaki
Sione Tuitupu Lauaki is a New Zealand rugby union footballer. His brother, Epalahame Lauaki, is a 2nd rower for Hull in the Super League competition and also a New Zealand international.-Early career:...
both played for the Pacific Islanders side but later went on to play for the New Zealand national rugby team as playing for the Islanders did not require a player to commit his international future to one of the 5 sides which make up the Pacific Islanders.
In late 2010 it was proposed by the New Zealand Rugby Union that former test players be allowed to play for their country of heritage. This would have allowed players like Jerry Collins
Jerry Collins
Jerry Collins is a New Zealand rugby union footballer who formerly played for the national team, the All Blacks in which he was capped 48 times. He now plays for Yamaha Jubilo, in Japanese Top league rugby.-Early career:...
to turn out for their countries of birth but the move was rejected by the IRB.
Rugby league
Because of the grandparent clause, on several occasions players have represented in State of Origin but played for another country or played for a country like Lebanon or Portugal without ever playing professional rugby league there.2006 Tri-Nations
The term Grannygate was used of Nathan Fien who played rugby leagueRugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
for New Zealand
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league football since intercontinental competition began for the sport in 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name...
in the 2006 Rugby League Tri-Nations
2006 Rugby League Tri-Nations
The 2006 Rugby League Tri-Nations was hosted for the second time by Australia and New Zealand. Sponsored by Gillette the tournament followed the same format as in 2004 and 2005, with each team meeting the other two teams twice, and the top two teams at the end of the group stages proceeding to the...
, despite not being qualified to do so. Fien had played State of Origin
Rugby League State of Origin
State of Origin is an annual best of three series of rugby league football matches contested by the Maroons and the Blues, who represent the Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales respectively...
for the Queensland Maroons in 2001 but was seeking permission to play for the Kiwis
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league football since intercontinental competition began for the sport in 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name...
in the second game of the 2006 Tri-Nations. Fien claimed eligibility based on the grandparent rule. Fien played in the losing Kiwi team in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
and in the winning Kiwi team against the Lions
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
in New Zealand. He was later banned after The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
revealed that Fien was claiming elibility based upon a great-grandmother and not a grandmother. A further consequence was that the Kiwis were forced to forfeit the two competitions points gained for the victory against the Lions which further hampered the Kiwis' efforts to make the final. Fien became eligible to play for the Kiwis in 2007 due to residency rules via his tenure with the Auckland Warriors in the NRL.
The effect of the incident on international rugby league was a public slanging match between the Australian Rugby League
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
(ARL) and the New Zealand Rugby League
New Zealand Rugby League
The New Zealand Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. The NZRL was founded on the 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year....
(NZRL). Selwyn Bennett, the chairman of the NZRL, resigned over the incident and two weeks later Andrew Chalmers announced that he would also leave his job with a year still to run on his contract. Graham Lowe, a former Kiwi coach, tabled a failed bid to have the whole NZRL replaced. Bennett has since claimed that the incident was good for international rugby league, accusing ARL chief executive, Geoff Carr
Geoff Carr
Geoff Carr is the CEO of the Australian Rugby League as well as the New South Wales Rugby League. He is also a retired rugby league footballer, having played first grade in the NSWRL premiership with the St. George Dragons during the 1970s and reached the 1971 grand final with them.Carr was...
, of knowing about Fien's ineigibility before it was revealed publicly. Bennett said: "Not only Geoff Carr but the secretary at the ARL Colin Love
Colin Love
Colin Love AM, is currently the chairman of the Rugby League International Federation, New South Wales Rugby League and has been the chairman of the Australian Rugby League since 1999...
looked into it. The only one who didn't know anything seemed to be me."
External links
- BBC News link
- http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/hilton-ineligible-for-scotland-after-41-caps-636371.html
- http://www.pina.com.fj/?p=pacnews&m=read&o=18266659344c649da67d6a553608f5&PHPSESSID=bfbb979e3a8a9a2b3af75f6c9b5841d8