Only those who have played 60 tests for the Wallabies and seven years of Super Rugby or at international level will be permitted the Australia Rugby Union's long-service dispensation which is designed to strengthen their World Cup squad, and in particular, allow inside back Matt Giteau, currently playing for Toulon, a pathway back.
But Tew this morning said there was little chance of the same thing happening here, in the short term, at least.
"You never say never, but our policy is that to wear the All Black jersey you have to play your rugby in New Zealand," Tew told Radio Sport.
"We have treated some players I guess with a little bit of flexibility in terms of their return to the country when they've become eligible but the core policy is if you're not here you don't play for us and we think that's been a very important part of our player retention strategy and there's no immediate thought of changing that.
"Right now the player market is incredibly competitive -- it's that time of the four-year cycle.
''We had quite a long discussion about it around the board table yesterday and we have no intentions of changing that policy but we're constantly reviewing what we're doing and if circumstances change we'd be foolish not to think about it but right now our policy is the policy and that's the end of it."
- Patrick McKendry
