New Zealand Rugby has no plans to change the All Blacks’ selection policy despite failing to bring Richie Mo’unga home, chief executive Mark Robinson has confirmed.

Talks between Mo’unga and NZ Rugby broke down at the end of 2024 as the national body attempted to lure him back to Aotearoa, but the fly-half has opted to remain in Japan after signing until 2026 with Toshiba Brave Lupus.

All Blacks boss Scott Robertson has made no secret of his desire to get Mo’unga back in New Zealand and eligible for selection and last year called for NZ Rugby to be ‘open-minded’ about their policies around selecting overseas-based players.

All Blacks selection policy

Currently, Robertson is unable to select players based abroad unless they are contracted to NZ Rugby and are on a playing sabbatical.

Ardie Savea was a beneficiary of a sabbatical last year as he missed the Super Rugby season in favour of a stint in Japan while the same is true for Jordie Barrett, who will be eligible for selection later this year despite currently playing for Leinster.

Because players like Mo’unga and Shannon Frizell don’t have contracts with NZ Rugby and instead left New Zealand for deals in Japan, they are not eligible for selection under the current policies.

All Blacks and Blues playmaker Beauden Barrett shared his view on the current selection policy in January.

“I think we just have to back what New Zealand Rugby are going with. Otherwise, it sets a bad precedent for the next generation,” he told reporters.

“It’s different for South Africa, they’ve got the reasons why. But for the time being, I think New Zealand Rugby have shown a little bit of backbone around [eligibility].”

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However, he slightly tweaked his view a week later suggesting that the policy could be relaxed allowing New Zealanders to play for other Super Rugby Pacific teams.

“I think if there’s Kiwis that want to go and play there (in Australia or Japan), they could still be eligible under a Giteau rule,” he said at the Super Rugby Pacific launch.

“The key is that those teams are in the competition, the same Super Rugby competition because it’s all about the Super Rugby competition.”

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‘No appetite’ for change

Despite calls for change and Robertson’s warning last year that the All Blacks could be left behind, NZ Rugby chief Robinson says that there is ‘no appetite’ for change with the board.

“We are very clear. The current policy we have is one that we think has served the game incredibly well for a long period of time now,” he said on Newstalk ZB’s Weekend Sport show.

“There’s no appetite to look at changing that any time soon.

“I think Razor [Robertson] would probably be the first to admit that he might have been able to be a little bit clearer with the way he spoke about it last year.

“He’s also in a space where, being one year into the role, he understands all the tools and flexibility we do have around that policy with the way sabbaticals work, and other terms we have in that policy.

“We are very aligned. Razor himself – the whole organisation is very clear that the policy is in place for very good reasons.

“I’m not going to speak any further on Razor’s behalf, he can speak to it later in the year but as it stands at the moment, we are very clear on our stance and we are really supportive of the policy going forward.”

Robinson believes that even with a new board being tasked with running the game in New Zealand – after provincial unions voted for change in governance last year – there has been no indication that the All Blacks’ eligibility rules are one of the changes that will take place.

“[There have] been no conversations on this matter with the board. The board, at any given time, obviously has the right to review any of our policies,” he added.

“It’s a New Zealand Rugby policy that the board ultimately have the right to decide on. But at this stage, there’s been no signal that it’s something they want to look at.”

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Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/all-blacks-eligibility-scott-robertson-dealt-blow-as-no-appetite-for-change-from-nz-rugby-board-after-failed-richie-mounga-bid