Richie Mo’unga’s All Blacks return delayed after fly-half’s longer-term contract snub
All Blacks fly-half Richie Mounga and inset of NZ Rugby CEO Mark Robinson.
Richie Mo’unga rejected a long-term contract offer from New Zealand Rugby, which would have sped up his return to the All Blacks set-up.
The fly-half, who signed for Japanese Rugby League One team the Toshiba Brave Lupus after the 2023 Rugby World Cup, will return to New Zealand shores next year after signing an 18-month contract through to the end of 2027.
Mo’unga rejected long-term contract
Due to NZ Rugby’s selection policies and the brevity of the contract, Mo’unga will only be eligible to represent the All Blacks from next October, despite his contract running from July 2026.
However, New Zealand Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson has revealed that Mo’unga rejected a long-term contract offer that would have sped up his return to the Test set-up and could have kept him in Aotearoa until the 2029 British and Irish Lions series.
“We obviously had a conversation with Richie about him being able to commit for longer, but ultimately this is Richie’s decision to sign through to the World Cup, which we’re really pleased about,” Robinson told The Post.
“But it [the contract] doesn’t make that threshold of him being able to come back immediately.
“We’re really comfortable with that and Richie’s really understanding of that and we’re moving on.
“I don’t want to get into the details of the conversations, but we would have been open for him for signing for longer.
“But we respect his decision to sign through to the World Cup.”
Keeping his options open
Mo’unga’s agent told the publication that he was eager to return to the All Blacks “as soon as possible” and was aware of the implications that came with signing a shorter-term contract.
His decision to sign through to the World Cup was made with the view of keeping options open, particularly with the sums of money being promised to players to join the R360 rebel league.
It is reported that an All Blacks player rejected a staggering $12m offer from the rebel league, while it is believed that no stars from Scott Robertson’s current squad have signed the legally binding pre-contractual agreements.
However, R360 has turned their attention to snapping up rugby league stars from the NRL and have captured four high-profile Springboks players.
READ MORE: Ex-Crusaders star reveals ‘massive motivating factor’ behind Richie Mo’unga’s return to New Zealand
