With all the political conflict and power struggles happening in the club rugby scene, it's perhaps refreshing to see a number of players looking to return home to become eligible for world cup selection, with James O'Connor (Australia), Dan Lydiate (Wales) and Steffon Armitage (England) among the most recent being mentioned for a switch back to their home countries.
The latest name being mentioned however, is fast becoming the most recognisable faces in the sport. Nick "The Honey Badger" Cummins left Australia for club rugby in Japan for family reasons, and is now looking for a loan deal back to Western Force in Perth to force new coach Michael Cheika's hand for next year's global showpiece.
After starring for the Barbarians in a thoroughly entertaining clash at Twickenham on Saturday, Baa-baas coach Sir John Kirwan championed Cummins for the Wallabies World Cup squad proclaiming that apart from his work ethic on the field, his off-field presence really helped the Barbarians become the success that they were at the weekend. Kirwan said about Cummins:
If I was Michael Cheika I'd be trying to get him home as soon as I could. He just knows how to sniff out a try and I thought what he did defensively today was incredible. He was cutting off their wide ball at times, just reading it properly. He's a special athlete.
Michael Cheika has left the ball in Cummins' hands, saying that if Cummins could sort out his own return to Super Rugby, that he would be considered. For his part, "The Badge" revealed this weekend that he was looking to get creative to try and secure a temporary return home. After just moving to Japan on a two year deal, Cummins said:
I would love to be back in the mix there, but I've signed for two years and I'm a man of my word so I'll go through with that. If there's a chance things can be worked out, I'd be stoked. We're being creative already, trying to get it through. Sometimes it's not so straightforward with the language barrier.
Contract-wise we're trying to be creative: it's not just about me taking, it's a two- way street, whatever I can give to them, and what they can do for me, hopefully we can work together.
It's understood that Cummins is willing to extend his contract with the Coca-Cola sponsored Japanese club in exchange for a season long release that would pave the way for World Cup eligibility.
We, as the rest of the rugby viewing world, wait on in anticipation, hoping the Honey Badger will grace our screens at rugby's global showpiece this time next year.
