'closed Shop' Puts Paid To Noble Thought

Sun Herald

Sunday December 21, 2008

By DANIEL LANE

WIGAN coach and former Great Britain international Brian Noble would be happy to end the Australian Rugby League's search for a new national coach.

However, the former police officer has no intention of applying for the most sought-after job in international rugby league because he fears Australia is a "closed shop".

Ricky Stuart relinquished the job in early December, admitting it was the only decision possible after an investigation confirmed details of his profanity-laden tirade against referee Ashley Klein and English referees official Stuart Cummings the day after the World Cup final loss to New Zealand.

Former Canberra and Australian captain Mal Meninga, who has coached Queensland and the Prime Minister's XIII for the past three seasons, expressed his interest in the role, as had the Gold Coast Titans John Cartwright, Stuart's assistant during the World Cup.

However, Noble, who captained the 1984 Great Britain team that toured Australia, said he'd love - and welcome - the opportunity to coach the Kangaroos.

"Absolutely," he enthused. "However, there is about 57,000 obstacles that would prevent that from ever happening. Firstly, having a Pom - a bloody 'Two and From' - coach Australia would create havoc. There are plenty of great coaches in Australia and if you did appoint someone from here it'd have to be legitimate - it couldn't be seen as a gimmick.

"I believe the Australian job is a closed shop. However, it could be exciting to have someone from here coach the Kangaroos."

Australia has exported plenty of coaches to foreign fields. Great Britain coach Tony Smith is Australian, and Wayne Bennett was assistant coach to World Cup winner New Zealand.

© 2008 Sun Herald

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