Meninga rules out Semi's Kangaroos return

Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga has shut the door on Semi Radradra playing for Australia this year due to his impending move to French rugby.

Semi Radradra

Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga has shut the door on Semi Radradra (pic) playing for Australia this year (AAP)

Australian coach Mal Meninga has ruled out Parramatta star Semi Radradra making a return to the Kangaroos line-up, rendering his scintillating NRL form irrelevant.

Radradra scored a career-high four tries to help the Eels record a comprehensive victory over St George Illawarra on Sunday night.

But despite his strong showing, Meninga is maintaining that Radradra's decision to leave the NRL at the end of the year for French rugby meant he wouldn't be considered for Kangaroos selection.

"We've got a really important tournament internationally with the World Cup and we'll pick Australians who are going to play rugby league," Meninga told Fox Sports.

"At the end of the day we've got Valentine Holmes and Corey Oates, if Billy (Slater) is back at fullback we've got Darbs (Darius Boyd) on the wing.

"We've got plenty of replacements."

But Meninga left the door open for Andrew Fifita to return to the Test fold, saying it's up to the Sharks star to make his case for redemption.

Asked if Fifita was a chance to play for the Kangaroos again, Meninga said: "Definitely. It's up to him though.

"It's about apologising, it's about your actions," he said.

"It's about taking responsibility and being accountable for what you've done."

Meanwhile, Jarryd Hayne's public statements about a possible move to French rugby haven't gone down well with the Kangaroos coach.

Meninga hinted players who spoke about leaving the game would not be considered for national honours.

"Some things I hear in the media from players where they say things like 'I don't know whether I'll be in the game or not' or 'I'm going to go to rugby union', to me that's not looking after the game," Meninga said.

"That's not what I want to see in a player.

"When they say things like that they don't understand how privileged they are and how lucky they are to be involved."


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Source: AAP



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