Nucifora Sidesteps Nsw Job But Homecoming Is On Cards

Sydney Morning Herald

Saturday April 5, 2008

Greg Growden

IT COMES as no surprise, considering the turmoil the Waratahs are experiencing, that David Nucifora has absolutely no interest in taking over from Ewen McKenzie as the next NSW coach.

But the offer of becoming the next Australian Rugby Union high performance unit manager is another matter.

Nucifora yesterday made it clear after the Blues' final training run before tonight's match against the Waratahs at the Sydney Football Stadium, that not even he was brave enough to tiptoe across the minefield otherwise known as Waratahland.

Since arriving in Sydney this week, Nucifora, who several years ago at the ACT Brumbies suffered the anguish of officials saying one thing and doing another, has been an interested observer of the latest example of the NSW Rugby Union imploding.

Reports of division among NSWRU board members, rifts between Waratahs players and head office, and serious concerns about team morale have surfaced in the days following the Waratahs' decision not to extend McKenzie's contract beyond this season. Now the Waratahs are looking for a new leader, prompting Brumbies coach Laurie Fisher to put his hand up, and even Michael Cheika's name resurfaced yesterday, despite his re-signing recently with Leinster in Ireland.

But Nucifora is keeping his hand firmly in his pocket.

When told the NSWRU wanted to name the 2009 coach within a month, Nucifora replied: "At this point in time, I don't have any genuine interest in the Waratahs job. So their timelines aren't of concern to me."

Nucifora said he would rather stay with the Blues, where he has the option of another season.

But the former Wallabies hooker's return to Australia is imminent if, as expected, ARU chief executive John O'Neill formally offers him the HPU job.

Nucifora admitted he had recently spoken to O'Neill, but they had not met this week because the ARU head was at the Adelaide Sevens tournament. When asked about the HPU position, which Nucifora is favoured to get over McKenzie, the Blues coach said there had been "some informal discussions about it".

"It is damned hard doing this [Blues coaching] job week to week," Nucifora said. "So all the speculation coming up about all the other jobs makes it quite difficult. I'm sure it will sort itself out over the coming month or two."

It also appears early concerns that if Nucifora took the ARU job he would want to live in Brisbane - when O'Neill was demanding he be based in Sydney - have been overcome. Travel caused problems during Pat Howard's term as HPU head, and he found the constant commuting between his Brisbane home and the ARU's Sydney office demanding.

"If I'm going to do a job, I'll commit to it 100 per cent and if it involves moving anywhere ... well, I've already had to move a couple of times in my career. Moving is not an issue," Nucifora said.

So it appears Nucifora may soon be a Sydney resident, even if he remained a bit cautious yesterday.

"I don't know whether I am top of the list, to be honest," he said. "If people are going to speculate on things, I suppose it is better to be included than excluded."

However, Nucifora's most pressing assignment tonight is quelling an opposition who are bound to be emotional in the wake of a dramatic week, and wanting to convince all that they remain united.

"Ewen is pretty popular among the guys," Nucifora said. "So I would think that the hard times they've been through with all the speculation will help them. I think it will be a positive. It will help them probably gel together a bit.

"In saying that, it also puts pressure on them. You have the pressure of the competition at this time of the year. The desperation starts to build a bit earlier on those teams which are trying to hang on. So we are expecting a pretty committed effort."

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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