No rose for Stransky
England coach won't select South African star
Posted: Monday December 14, 1998 05:09 PM
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England coach Clive Woodward said it would be a "very sad day for English rugby" if Stransky was selected for the '99 World Cup squad David Rogers/Allsport |
LONDON (AP) -- England rugby union coach Clive Woodward has no interest in selecting former South African star Joel Stransky when the fly-half becomes eligible next year.
Stransky, whose drop kick clinched the 1995 World Cup for South Africa, has English grandparents and is available to play for England after a three-year eligibility period has elapsed since his last appearance for the Springboks in 1996.
He plans to stay in England and continue his career with Leicester.
Woodward, whose England team beat the Springboks 13-7 10 days ago to stop South Africa completing a world record 18 wins in a row, said Stransky would not enter into his thoughts.
"If I was asked whether I would choose him for World Cup 1999, the answer is basically no," the England coach said.
"I would have to be very desperate to do so and I would chose him only with the greatest reluctance and with huge reservations. If I had to it would be a very sad day for English rugby.
"I prefer to pick only English-qualified players who have not appeared for another country," Woodward said.
"You can't compare Joel's case with [South African-born] Mike Catt. Mike was not a pro rugby player when he came here. He qualified through parents and above all had not been capped by South Africa.
"We have more rugby players than any other country in the world and, if we can't find stand-offs -- or any other positions -- with our own qualified players in the normal way, then it will be a bad day for our game," Woodward said.
"Once we started going down the Stransky road we would easily find the English national team filled with older players who have finished test careers in their own country and served the necessary qualification."
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