Kolpak

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mol2
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Kolpak

Post by mol2 »

With the UK leaving the EU I was wondering what the impact will be on the numbers of foreign players that were once permitted under the Kolpak agreement.

I would presume those already living and playing in England will continue to be permitted to do so.

However will it dry up the numbers of players entering from Kolpak countries? Will they have to meet the higher threshold relating to being of international standard to qualify for a work permit? If so it may well change the face of the Premiership with a premium placed on home grown players.

This will have financial implications for clubs but might give opportunities for younger home players to break into the Premiership when they may have been kept out by a journeyman who is a seasoned pro and seen as less risk. How many players are lost because they have to chose between an uncertain career in RU and university or career outside of rugby.
An easy call if you are good enough to have international aspirations but if the best you might make is squad player or lower division rugby it must be a hard choice.
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