The New Zealand-born fly-half moved to Australia at 13
Quade Cooper denied Australian citizenship
Quade Cooper, the fly-half with 70 caps for the Wallabies, has been denied Australian citizenship, the player revealed on Twitter.
The 33-year-old was born in Auckland and has travelled using his New Zealand passport throughout his career, but he has lived in Australia since the age of 13. He was eligible to play for the Wallabies on residency grounds.
Awkward moment @ausgov refuse your citizenship applications (again)?? wearing the green and gold 70 times apparently is not enough these days.. ?
Cheers Shannon pic.twitter.com/jMSa1moWsA— Quade Cooper (@QuadeCooper) July 13, 2021
In 2016, the playmaker was unable to represent the Australia Sevens side at the Olympics due to his lack of citizenship.
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Cooper has represented the Wallabies at two World Cups and won the 2011 Super Rugby competition with the Queensland Reds.
As Cooper said in his tweet: “Awkward moment (Australian Government) refuse your citizenship applications (again) wearing the green and gold 70 times apparently is not enough these days.”
I feel the phrase ‘common sense’ should be recoined..
Turns out common sense isn’t very common.
Give QC his QC!!#QuadesCitizenship https://t.co/2ewfpJkEWj
— Drew Mitchell (@drew_mitchell) July 13, 2021
Cooper made his Wallabies debut in 2008, against Italy in Padova. His last outing in Green and Gold came in 2017 – again against Italy, though that time the match was played in Brisbane.
Former Wallaby wing Drew Mitchell also took to social media to voice his opinion, tweeting: “I feel the phrase ‘common sense’ should be recoined.. Turns out common sense isn’t very common. Give QC his QC!!”
Cooper has been playing rugby in Japan recently, with the Kintetsu Liners. However, according to reports, applicants for citizenship can be exempt from residency rules if they meet “special residency requirements”. Representing the country in rugby 70 times does not appear to meet that mark in this case.
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