Rugby-Tighten eligibility rules, says former England captain Corry

SINGAPORE, July 15 (Reuters) - Rules that allowed England rugby manager Martin Johnson to fill almost a third of his World Cup training squad with foreign players are wrong, former captain Martin Corry told Reuters on Friday.

Johnson has been criticised in the media for selecting 13 overseas-born players in his 45-man pre-World Cup training squad, while one English player has vented his frustration at being overlooked.

“Look they’re the rules and you’ve got to abide by the rules,” Corry told Reuters in Singapore where he is promoting the Singapore Cricket Club’s rugby sevens tournament later in the year.

“I think the rules are wrong but in terms of where do you apportion blame, that’s not Jonno (Johnson) and his coaches, they’ve got to pick the best possible side.”

The inclusion of New Zealand-born Thomas Waldrom prompted back-rower Luke Narraway to issue a message on his Twitter page (@lukenarraway) that appeared to take issue with Waldrom’s eligibility through his English grandmother.

“Good luck to Thomas the Tank and his English nan #notbittermuch” wrote Narraway.

A non-English born player can qualify for the national side if a parent or grandparent was born in England, or if they complete 36 consecutive months of residency.

Corry called for the eligibility rules to be toughened.

“If it is someone through residency or grandparents, unfortunately that’s the situation because all the other sides are doing it,” he added. “What I would like to see is a stricter rule on it, but it is a minefield.”

Corry, a member of England’s 2003 World Cup-winning squad, said Johnson’s outfit are better prepared than their 2007 counterparts, who lost 15-6 to South Africa in the final.

“They’ll be looking at the semi-finals and when it comes to the semi-finals then you’re two games away from winning.

“Against Australia last year in the autumn they showed they can beat the best teams in the world, also against South Africa they showed they can come very much second best,” he added.

“The mental toughness which England have developed will stand them in good stead,” said Corry, who won 64 caps.

England’s World Cup preparations have been overshadowed by the departure of chief executive John Steele from the Rugby Football Union amid a reshuffle, and 37-year-old Corry said the players could be distracted.

“Of course it will be a distraction because if you’re asking me these questions then all the media will be asking the players these questions, so instead of just focusing on the World Cup there will be some questions around it (the subject),” he said.

“There’s always been politics in the game but it’s disappointing now that it’s front page news, the way the game is run in my view should always be in the background.

“But there’s a lot of voices now that want to be heard behind the scenes which is disappointing because it’s only damaging the great game,” he added.