The soaring number of foreign-born players in the Six Nations is a ‘joke’, ‘dangerous’ and making the competition a ‘second tier’ of international competition, according to greats of the game.
A swathe of stars, including former England captain Lewis Moody, have applauded World Rugby vice-president Agustin Pichot for his stance on the game’s residency laws, saying they must change to preserve the sport’s integrity.
ENGLAND (3 players)
| PLAYER | BORN IN | ELIGIBILITY |
| Bevan Rodd | Scotland | Parent |
| Marcus Smith | Philippines | Parent |
| Manu Tuilagi | Samoa | Residency (2007) |
| Louis Lynagh | Italy | Residency (2007) |
Marcus Smith of England celebrates after winning during the Autumn Nations Match between England and South Africa at Twickenham Stadium on 20 November 2021. Photo: Tom Sandberg/PPAUK
FRANCE (4)
| PLAYER | BORN IN | ELIGIBILITY |
| Uini Atonio | New Zealand | Residency (2014) |
| Bernard le Roux | South Africa | Residency (2012) |
| Paul Willemse | South Africa | Residency (2018) |
| Virimi Vakatawa | New Zealand | Residency (2013) |
IRELAND (7)
| PLAYER | BORN IN | ELIGIBILITY |
| Rob Herring | South Africa | Grandparent |
| Finlay Bealham | Australia | Grandparent |
| Kieran Treadwell | England | Parent |
| Jamison Gibson-Park | New Zealand | Residency (2020) |
| Joey Carbery | New Zealand | Parent |
| Bundee Aki | New Zealand | Residency (2017) |
| Mack Hansen | Australia | Parent |
Elliot Daly of England tackles Bundee Aki of Ireland during the six Nations Championship match, between England and Ireland at Twickenham Stadium, London , UK, on the 17th March 2017. (Photo:Dean Lancaster/PPAUK)
WALES (12)
| PLAYER | BORN IN | ELIGIBILITY |
| Bradley Roberts | South Africa | Grandparent |
| Tomas Francis | England | Grandparent |
| Ben Carter | England | Residency (2004) |
| Will Rowlands | England | Parent |
| Christ Tshiunza | DR Congo | Residency (2015) |
| Ross Moriarty | England | Parent |
| Gareth Anscombe | New Zealand | Parent |
| Jonathan Davies | England | Parent |
| Willis Halaholo | New Zealand | Residency (2019) |
| Nick Tompkins | England | Grandparent |
| Alex Cuthbert | England | Parent |
| Johnny McNicholl | New Zealand | Residency (2019) |
ITALY (13)
| PLAYER | BORN IN | ELIGIBILITY |
| Cherif Traoré | Guinea | Residency (2004) |
| Ivan Nemer | Argentina | Grandparent |
| Hame Faiva | New Zealand | Residency (2020) |
| Ion Neculai | Moldova | Residency (2006) |
| David Sisi | Germany | Parent |
| Sebastian Negri | Zimbabwe | Parent |
| Braam Steyn | South Africa | Residency (2015) |
| Toa Halafihi | New Zealand | Residency (2021) |
| Callum Braley | England | Grandparent |
| Stephen Varney | Wales | Parent |
| Juan Ignacio Brex | Argentina | Grandparent |
| Monty Ioane | Australia | Residency (2020) |
| Ange Capuozzo | France | Parent |
SCOTLAND (23)
| PLAYER | BORN IN | ELIGIBILITY |
| Allan Dell | South Africa | Grandparent |
| Pierre Schoeman | South Africa | Residency (2021) |
| Ewan Ashman | Canada | Parent |
| Willem Nel | South Africa | Residency (2015) |
| Javan Sebastian | Wales | Parent |
| Sam Skinner | England | Parent |
| Andy Christie | England | Grandparent |
| Hamish Watson | England | Grandparent |
| Josh Bayliss | England | Grandparent |
| Nick Haining | Australia | Grandparent |
| Ali Price | England | Parent |
| Ben Vellacott | England | Parent |
| Ben White | England | Grandparent |
| Chris Harris | England | Grandparent |
| Rory Hutchinson | England | Grandparent |
| Sam Johnson | Australia | Residency (2018) |
| Cameron Redpath | France | Parent |
| Sione Tuipulotu | Australia | Grandparent |
| Rufus McLean | USA | Parent |
| Sean Maitland | New Zealand | Grandparent |
| Kyle Steyn | South Africa | Parent |
| Duhan van der Merwe | South Africa | Residency (2020) |
| Kyle Rowe | England | Cumulative Residency |
Duhan van der Merwe of Scotland slips the tackle from Maro Itoje of England Rugby during the Six Nations Championship, 127th Calcutta Cup match between England and Scotland at Twickenham Stadium, Twickenham, London on January 6 2021. - PHOTO: Phil Mingo/PPAUK
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- Jordie Barrett over Damian de Allende is far from being correct. The hype around Dupont is also overreaching, he's probably 4th in the world and has been since the 2023 WC. He also avoids certain matchups which is strange. The rest of the list is pretty good apart from minor subjective biases.JasonMarlow16-09-2026
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