The Australian Rugby Union is facing some tough decisions over the future of second-rower Kane Douglas, who is caught in a tug-of-war between the Wallabies and Irish club Leinster ahead of the World Cup.
Do they pay an estimated $370,000 to release him from his current deal so he can sign with the Queensland Reds or once again bend their own eligibility rules to make room for the Super Rugby title-winning forward?
Neither path will be easy to justify, with flow-on effects the ARU will be keen to avoid.
Douglas is playing in Dublin on a multi-year deal with the three-time European Cup winners after departing the Waratahs after their Super Rugby title win last year. As a favourite of former NSW and now-Wallabies coach Michael Cheika and a player in a position of limited depth in the Wallabies, the 26-year-old has long been the subject of speculation he could exit Leinster early and return home ahead of the World Cup.
The catch? With just 14-Test caps under his belt, Douglas cannot be brought home under 'Giteau's Law', the new ARU rule that allows a Wallabies coach to draft in overseas-based players with 60 or more Test caps and seven years of service in Australia.
Douglas would have to sign with an Australian province, as fellow second rower Dean Mumm has done with NSW, and leave Leinster halfway through his contract. While the Waratahs are also interested in repatriating their former second-rower, it is understood Douglas would almost certainly favour a move to Ballymore for family reasons.
Cheika was coy about the matter inside Wallabies camp on the Sunshine Coast on Wednesday, saying only that he was "hearing noise he [Douglas] wants to come home". But a statement overnight from Leinster shed more light on the situation, and the ARU's plan.
"Leinster Rugby have this afternoon confirmed that they have received a request from the Australian Rugby Union to release Kane Douglas under World Rugby Regulation 9," a statement on the club's website read.
"Leinster Rugby Team Manager Guy Easterby confirmed that a formal request had been received last Friday afternoon. 'We are delighted for Kane and wish him well as he seeks the form and fitness required for selection for the Rugby Championship and, of course, the Rugby World Cup after that'."
World Rugby's Regulation 9 allows countries to access overseas-based players in designated Test windows. But the ARU is still facing a dilemma over how they make a move home work under their own eligibility rules, which preclude them from bringing him home on a short-term basis.
Could yet another rule tweak be in the works?
It is either that or the ARU and the Reds are seriously considering paying out the release fee being demanded by Leinster.
Fairfax Media understands the figure is close to $370,000 (€250,000), which is more than the estimated $221,000 (€150,000) asking price to release Quade Cooper from his deal with Toulon.
