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.

In 2016, the playmaker was unable to represent the Australia Sevens side at the Olympics due to his lack of citizenship.

Related: Watch Prop Taniela Tupou play scrum-half for Wallabies try

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.”

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.

Can’t get to the shops? You can download the digital edition of Rugby World straight to your tablet or subscribe to the print edition to get the magazine delivered to your door.

Follow Rugby World on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.