As an Aussie he needed UKBA permission to enter under the immigration rules, regardless of the French visa and if he was denied the visa in the first place because of the charge, then after conviction it's arguable he shouldn't have been admitted at all.


He's already been admitted to the UK since the conviction so UKBA have effectively said its ok. It will certainly be a factor in any application, but its anyone's guess as to what's going on.

Only a rovers fan could label the current MOS just because he may be signing for Hull FC.

No idea at all about visas but will the fact he's got a child over here work in his favour? I imagine it would but like I say haven't a clue about them.

Boom!

Surely at least one of those would give him a British passport. If he's not got a British passport then letting him play for us is madness. I'm okay with adopted citizens playing for a UK team but surely you'd have to have passport. What kind of crazy employment system are we running here where he can play for England but then needs a visa to work here?

Bird was probably allowed in as a Sports Visitor.

But his visa is valid for 3 years or until he changes employment, so I doubt UKBA will have been doing background checks every time he comes back into the country, they'll just check his visa is current, which it is. It's only now that he's had to apply to extend his visa that he may find problems. It depends if UKBA have relaxed their stance or not from a couple of years ago.

Well the only that applies to him is "c" and "d". I don't know if living here for 3 years is enough to get a passport, and the GBH conviction wouldn't help him gain a British passport either.
Well because the eligibility rules for international rugby league are different to the rules necessary to be a UK citizen.

Manu Tuilagi also seemed to have a bit of a Visa issue before he made his debut for England RU IIRC.

Also worth noting Grant Millington has said Chase has been training "really hard" all week with Cas.

I think it'd be easier to argue that it is the qualifications required to play for England RL are crazy, rather than the employment system. But they don't look very different to RU, for example, or possibly cricket (could be wrong on the latter, not really up on it).
The laws of the country and the rules of RL are not integrated; though its clear which take precedence. The England RL team has no official legal standing.

Bird still had to satisfy the general immigration rules for each entry, regardless of how he was coming in, which was my beef at the time, but that's past history.

I would hope, not just cos he's apparently off to Hull, that the fact Rangi got back in after declaring the conviction means he shouldn't have problem now. UKBA can't have it both ways.

The only problem I can imagine is time - getting it done before the deadline - if its a double check job. And Kosh reckons Crocker was registered without a visa - if so it doesn't matter. Or maybe it does because would Hull pay Cas to transfer the registration without being 100% certain a visa would be granted? Head hurts. Somebody will know whats going on and even if they worked for the HDM (and tbf journalists can't be experts on every subject they have to knock out copy on), they'll spin it out to the last.
I'd be (at least slightly) surprised if he isn't sorted by friday. Timely boost and all that.

That is madness although I'm sure his status as an England player should be more than enough to comply with a visa. Deporting a current England international would be ludicrous.