A former NRL boss has been named as the frontrunner for the Australia job ahead of their autumn Ashes series against England.
Ex-Brisbane Broncos coach Kevin Walters is now the favourite for the international role, taking over from Mal Meninga.
Meninga stepped aside to take on the Perth Bears head coach role, and the Australian Rugby League Commission have decided to stick with a rule that means that the Australia job must be the coach’s only role.
That means that Wayne Bennett is now effectively ruled out of taking the Australia job, as he’s currently the South Sydney Rabbitohs head coach.
Walters’ name has been mentioned previously, but was never considered a serious contender until now.
Speaking to Australian radio network Triple M two weeks ago, Walters said: “It would be a huge honour to coach Australia. I’d certainly like to sit down with people and have a chat about what the situation is and what they are looking for…I’d be very interested in that role.”
Ex-Brisbane Broncos boss becomes new favourite for Australia job ahead of NRL legend
It seems that Cameron Smith was the previous frontrunner, but the ARLC are concerned with his lack of experience as a head coach.
Walters’ first coaching job was at Catalans Dragons back in 2009 before returning to Australia.
He was then named as the Queensland State of Origin coach from 2016 to 2019, taking over from Meninga as he moved into the Australian head coaching role.
He’s most recently been at Brisbane Broncos, where in 2021, he made his debut as an NRL coach, and spent four seasons at the club, guiding them to a Grand Final appearance in 2023.
With just three months to go until the Ashes series, the ARLC needs to make a decision pronto, as Australia’s preparation is looking last-minute ahead of such a historic occasion.
With clarification on the new ruling, it looks like Walters will be named as Australia’s head coach sooner rather than later.
