Henry only interested in club advisory role

Graham Henry is set to turn his back on international rugby after declaring his interest in becoming an adviser for a leading European club if he returns to the sport after a season out.

Almost a month to the day since he guided New Zealand to the Rugby World Cup title on home soil, Henry again dismissed speculation linking him with the vacant England job by saying he has had enough of top-level coaching. The 65-year-old New Zealander is instead keen to sample the passion and intensity of the Heineken Cup, Europe’s top club competition, but in a consultancy role rather than in any coaching set-up.

“I have no desire to coach a team,” said Henry, who insisted his chances of being involved in Test rugby this time next year were “zero out of 10”.

“I’ve done 140 tests and that is probably enough. But you never say never. My desire is to live in New Zealand predominantly. If there’s somebody who wants me in this part of the world (Europe) as an adviser, a Heineken Cup team, I would be interested at looking at that.”

Henry, who is contracted to the New Zealand union to the end of March, said he has had no concrete offers from any clubs but has “had a chat to a couple of people,” without giving any more details. “I like what I see in that competition,” Henry said about the Heineken Cup. “There’s a lot of passion and some interesting places to go to. That would create a bit of interest. But I would say that isn’t for this particular season. If that were to arise, it would be next year.”

Henry’s rebuff to England came on the same day another target, Nick Mallett, said he wouldn’t be taking any coaching role before June. The English-born South African, whose contract with Italy wasn’t renewed after the World Cup, previously turned down an approach from England’s Rugby Football Union because he did not want to report to director Rob Andrew.

That leaves Northampton Saints coach Jim Mallinder as the leading candidate to replace Martin Johnson, who quit as England manager last week in the wake of the team’s disappointing World Cup campaign.