Martin Johnson named his team for England's Test Match against Australia on Saturday, with the decision to include Shontayne Hape in the starting XV making the headlines. Hape, a Rugby League convert, has been picked at Inside Centre for the encounter and will be making his Test debut against the Wallabies.
In my opinion, the inclusion of the Bath centre in the side is a welcome one. He is an outstanding talent, with a dynamic nature that has been lacking from the England midfield in recent years. Hape possesses an explosive step, soft hands and a decent turn of pace that should see him in good stead in the Test Match arena. He'll let no-one down in defence, and his success with Bath this year has meant that he warrants a place in the team.
However, one striking piece of information about Hape leads us to the focal point of this article; nationality and selection in Sport. Shontayne, in his Rugby League playing days, represented New Zealand on fourteen occasions before his switch to Union and his decision to make himself eligible to be selected for England. An instance such as this raises the issues of nationality and allegiance within Sport and leads me to questions a number of different things on a number of different levels
The first and most obvious question to look at is whether governing bodies for different sports should allow players to do this. Should Jarryd Hayne, from the world of Rugby League, be allowed to play for Fiji in the 2008 Rugby League World Cup and then represent Australia the following year? Well, I'm of the opinion that governing bodies around the globe should take a much stronger stance on instances such as these, and press players to declare themselves eligible for one nation at an early stage in their career (i.e before they've gained representative honours). Players should then be made to stick with their decisions, throughout their careers, so as to honour the commitment that they've made to that particular nation.
A further question raised by these issues, is whether the professionals involved in nation-swapping have the same pride in 'putting on the shirt' as a player that has stuck with the same country throughout their career . Does Shontayne Hape get that same inspirational and emotional feeling running through him when the English national anthem is played, or he pulls on the shirt for the first time? Does Hape's decision to play for England, devalue the importance of that moment when he performed the Haka with his teammates? Does Jarryd Hayne share the same emotions about playing for Australia as some of his other teammates? Do these questions matter? Are they relevant in the world of Sport? To the players themselves and the fans? It must be made clear that this is not an attack on the players mentioned in the article, or indeed any other sportsmen and women that have made the same decision, but merely an inquiry into the way in which they think.
Finally, do these issues affect the fans? Do we passionately care as much about players that have changed nations, as we do about professionals that have dedicated their life to one nation? Are fans accepting of nation-swapping or are they more bothered about overall team sucess? As a fan, although bothered by players switching the country that they represent, I'm happy to support any player that represents England on the basis that they are committed to their performance. Ideally I'd like the rules to be changed so that these sorts of issues couldn't occur but, with the regulations as they are, I'll be watching on Saturday morning hoping that Shontayne gives the Aussies a hiding.
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