Thankfully, those days are gone.
Rugby league's spring competition kicks off today, with three of the seven teams competing having mainly rugby players in their side.
Rugby clubs competing are Pirates, the Hawks (Harbour rugby) and the Kaikorai Silverbacks, made up of a mix of rugby players and Harbour Seals rugby league players.
Otago Rugby League development officer Grant Milne said he was thrilled to have so much player interest and to see such enthusiasm for the competition.
He was quick to point out that from today, everyone taking part in the competition would be rugby league players.
Rugby league sides taking part are the South Pacific Raiders, the Kia Toa Tigers, University and the South City Dragonz.
Milne said the competition was essential for furthering the level of rugby league in Otago. He hoped for a good clean product and a speedier game, with teams playing 30-minute halves.
Otago Rugby Football Union general manager Richard Reid did not have a problem with rugby players taking part.
He said the games were very similar and it was a good thing there was room for a crossover of codes.
The competition will have seven rounds of pool play, with each team playing each other once, before going into the semifinals and final.
Milne said it would be interesting to see how the new teams adapted to rugby league.
He said fitness would not be a problem, as a lot of players were coming off 12 weeks of rugby.
The competition will clash with the Otago rugby league representative season, which starts next Saturday.
The Otago side, known as the Whalers, will face Southland and then Canterbury in Dunedin, before taking on Tasman and West Coast away from home.
Milne said he did not think this would have any bearing on the spring competition, as the Raiders, Tigers and University all had large squads to choose from.
The spring competition starts today with two games kicking off at 1.30pm and one at 2.45pm. Games are played at Hancock Park.
Otago players Kenny Hemopo, Callum Smith, Jonnie Hughes, Jermaine Stone and Tamati Davis have been picked to take part in a South Island trial in Christchurch today.
All are from the South Pacific Raiders.
