Rugby Union versus Rugby League: The Technical Issues
As I said in a previous article, the hardest obstacle that professional players need to overcome when converting from rugby league to rugby union seems to be cultural. While this is of course all anecdotal, the fact that 100% of the big signings of 2002 have now returned to league and most of them under fairly dubious circumstances is relevant. However, the fact that they were all able to rise to the top of both sports should not imply there is not a technical divide too; it’s just that these players were…
Rugby Union versus Rugby League: The Cultural Divide
Lote Tuqiri’s conversion back to Rugby League marks the last of the ‘big three’ signings of 2002 to return to the 13-man game. Mat Rogers, Wendell Sailor, and now Tuqiri have now all returned to the game in which they first made their name, rugby league. Whether or not this means their conversions were disasters can be debated. However, Mat Rogers went on to play 45 times for the Australian National side, the Wallabies, 45 times in a variety of backline positions and holds the record for most points for the Wallabies in a…

