League: NRL block Marshall's Japan move

Benji Marshall wants to play rugby in the offseason in Japan. Photo / Getty Images

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SYDNEY - National Rugby League (NRL) boss David Gallop has put the brakes on Kiwis star Benji Marshall's hopes of playing rugby union in Japan.

Gallop said the NRL will not allow Marshall to play in Japan without finalising a new deal with his Wests Tigers club and then re-signing for the club when he returned early next year.

Marshall is off contract at the end of the season and had hoped to supplement his income with a lucrative spell in Japan in the 2009 and 2010 offseasons.

"I can't see how it would be in league's best interests to allow a star player to play for one of our competitors," Gallop told News Limited.

"We're already under pressure over the amount of football played. Why would we allow a star to risk injury playing in another code?

"I haven't seen a proposal from Benji or Wests Tigers, but at the moment the answer is no."

- AAP