Nat Fyfe's shoulder injury in Australia training session will test future of International Rules Series Nat Fyfe during Australia training for International Rules. AFL football chief Mark Evans wrote to the game's most influential players in May seeking their views - or, more to the point, their endorsement - on International Rules. With the exception of Gold Coast captain Gary Ablett, each AFL star immediately responded - and with eagerness for the compromised Australian-Gaelic football combination that manifests again in a one-off Test in Perth on Saturday. This is no surprise. Give any sportsman, in particular an Australian, the chance to represent his country and he will not pass up the honour. If Evans sent the same letter to every AFL player about State-of-Origin, the reaction would be same. This view has been reaffirmed again and again by the players in their union survey. The last AFL Players" Association poll of the league's 780 players - in August - revealed 82 per cent wanted to restore State-of-Origin to the AFL program. But there is a starkly contrasting view at AFL House - and among the 18 AFL clubs - on International Rules and Origin (that was last played in 1999). Origin is headache. When to play it - pre-season, mid-season or end-of-season? Each point on the AFL calendar presents a problem. There is no form line for the State selectors in the pre-season. Mid-season runs the risk of injury and fatigue for players - and some clubs, such as Adelaide and Port Adelaide, would carry a greater burden in supplying players to State teams. End-of-season delays player surgery and, as history tells, is hard to sell to the fans. Origin also presents a nightmare for the format. How many State teams? When to play - all at once or across a four-year schedule? By comparison, International Rules is much easier to manage. It can be just one Test at the end of the season. One format - Australia v Ireland. There also is the question of what does the AFL get from International Rules compared to Origin? A regular Test match against the Irish Gaelic amateurs allows the AFL to justify its place in the Australian Institute of Sport where the development programs for junior players and coaches are full of merit. The AFL can point to an "international component" in its charter - and justify government funding at the AIS. Origin does not carry any spoils. But International Rules and Origin today do share one common thread - the risk of injury to star players. Fremantle club champion Nat Fyfe will miss Saturday's Test after damaging his right shoulder in a practice match with the NSW GAA team in western Sydney on Tuesday. The reality that hurt Origin - that an AFL premiership means far more than bragging rights between Victorians and South Australians (or West Australians) in State games - ultimately will test everyone's appetite for a made-up game against the Irish. Just as Origin collapsed under the clubs" fear of their multimillion-dollar investment in their players and premiership programs, so will International Rules. Origin is sadly missed. Would the end of International Rules bring a tear? Surely not, particularly when it is not even promoting the merit of Australian football on the international stage.