Hansen: I won’t be coaching England

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Updated: 7:00am – All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen has ruled out the possibility of succeeding Eddie Jones as England boss.

Hansen’s New Zealand contract expires after the next World Cup with his future beyond Japan 2019 undecided but the 58-year-old is adamant he will not take charge of another international side if he does step down.

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Jones is tied to England, who finished fifth in this year’s Six Nations, until 2021 after signing a two-year extension in January that is subject to a break clause dependent on performance at the global showpiece.

“I can say I won’t be coaching England,” Hansen told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Sportsweek program.

“If I was going to stay coaching international rugby then I’d stay coaching the All Blacks. It’s a massive time commitment no matter what team you’re with.

“It would have to be right for the family and the team. If it’s not right for both those parties, it wouldn’t be right for me to go off and coach someone else. I’d rather stay and do it in New Zealand if it was right.

“I don’t know what I’ll do when the day comes for me to finish but coaching is in my blood.

“I’ll probably be coaching until the day I die. Whether that’s in England, we’ll have to wait and see.”

Successive defeats to Scotland, France and Ireland have registered England’s worst Championship performance since 1987 but Hansen believes they have suffered from providing the bulk of the squad for last summer’s British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand.

Hansen and Jones will go head to head on November 10 in the second of the four autumn internationals staged at Twickenham this year.

“You don’t want to be panicking too much up there. England are a good rugby side,” Hansen said.

– PA / RNZ

Featured image: All Blacks coach Steve Hansen. Photo: photosport

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