Applications pile up for Taranaki coaching job

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Close to 20 hopefuls have already applied for the vacant Taranaki rugby coaching job.

Applications close tomorrow, with a short list expected to be drawn up next week before interviews take place within a fortnight.

Taranaki Rugby Football Union chairman Peter Crawford said it had been decided that a panel would draw up a short list.

From there, the full TRFU board would be involved in appointing the coach.

The vacancy arose after Adrian Kennedy resigned from the job earlier this month after two years in charge. The first outsider to coach the province, he left the post after Taranaki finished eighth in the Air New Zealand Cup in both his seasons in the job.

In 2007, TRFU chief executive Mark Robinson, All Blacks assistant coach Wayne Smith, Crawford, director Martin Dravitzki, Ian Snook and Lyall Bunn sat on the appointment panel that decided Kennedy was the best man for the job.

Crawford said the decision to involve the whole board, and not just an appointment panel, was a simple one.

"It's just so we have a situation where everyone (on the board) is happy with the decision."

He confirmed a number of applications had been received from overseas coaches.

"Taranaki is obviously being held in high regard around the world and we've got some good, strong candidates coming through. Hopefully we'll get the right one."

The number of applications had not exceeded expectations, according to Robinson.

"We'd like to think that it's a job that will certainly appeal to people. We think the union is in good heart and good shape and has a lot of potential. We expected there would be a keen amount of interest."

While the number of applicants stood at "17 or 18", Robinson believed there would still be a late rush.

He said the shortlist of candidates would not be made public.

Several coaches within Taranaki who signalled their intention to stand for the job are all believed to have applied or will apply, including Kennedy's former assistant Neil Barnes, Taranaki development coach Shane McDonald and his assistant Michael Carr, long-standing New Plymouth Old Boys coach Ross Lilley and club championship-winning Coastal coach Kevin Walden.

A joint bid involving Kennedy's former assistant, Leo Crowley, and Manawatu assistant and former All Black Jason O'Halloran is believed to have fallen through after the Palmerston North-based union would not release O'Halloran from the last year of his contract.

Of the local candidates, Barnes appears to have the support of a strong number of players, although his fellow assistant, Ra Mako, looks to have fallen out of favour with the union after he was not reappointed sevens coach.

Another name being mentioned from outside Taranaki is Hurricanes assistant Jonathan Phillips.

Phillips, who has not returned several calls from the Taranaki Daily News, is believed to have been shortlisted for the position in 2007. He worked with Scotland's age grade, sevens and development teams from 1996 to 2003 before joining the Hurricanes. A number of senior players are believed to have approached him encouraging him to stand. He might be reluctant to apply, however, given Hurricanes coach Colin Cooper is standing down after the next Super 14 season.