Michael Maguire says he would love to work with Eddie Jones at some stage in the future, but knocked back the chance to be his assistant coach at the Wallabies out of his loyalty to Ricky Stuart and desire to eventually win another premiership as a head coach in rugby league.
Jones, who has made no secret of his desire to poach the best players and coaches from the NRL since returning for his second stint as Wallabies, headhunted Maguire as his assistant.
While the former premiership-winning coach was flattered by the approach – a chance to oversee the Wallabies’ defence – he couldn’t renege on the commitment he made to Canberra coach Stuart.
Maguire agreed to become a Raiders consultant last October and said his loyalty was to the Raiders, who he represented during his playing career. Speaking about Jones’ approach, Maguire said he had unfinished business in the 13-man game, including a desire to one day return to head coaching.
“I’d love to work with Eddie,” Maguire told the Herald.
“I’ve known Eddie for a long time, he’s a fanatical Souths fan. We spent quite a bit of time catching up during my time at Souths. He does love rugby league but his passion is obviously on the union side at the moment.
“I’ve stayed in touch with him. He’s a high achiever in everything he’s done in the coaching space over a long period of time.
“I love Eddie’s mentality, he trains his players at a high level and we probably have the same mentality in many of the things we do.
“At this present moment, I’m really enjoying my time at Canberra. The thought of winning another [league] competition, whether it be here or wherever it may be, I’m very hungry for that once again.
“I love the combat of the game. I know rugby union has similar attributes, but rugby league is where I want to be at the moment.
“Whether Eddie and I cross paths in the future, only time will tell. At the end of the day, I’m very hungry to win a competition and that’s what I’ve set out to do.”
Michael Maguire won’t be defecting to rugby.
Maguire played alongside Stuart at the Raiders and the pair have remained close ever since. Which is why Maguire informed the former halfback of the union approach and assured him he would fulfil his obligations.
“He was well and truly aware,” Maguire said. “That’s part of being a strong team, you need to be open and honest with the people around you. I’m very appreciative of what ‘Stick’ has done in giving me an opportunity here.
“With Stick, I’m really enjoying working with him. Being away for 15 years, the whole place has transformed.
“It’s a different feel down here in the community, you can feel the hunger for the Raiders. It feels a bit like the early ’90s. Getting back to that success would be very nice.”
Maguire is one of the few coaches to have won premierships in both hemispheres. The former Rabbitohs mentor said he was better for the challenges he encountered at Wests Tigers and that his ultimate ambition was to again become an NRL head coach.
Eddie Jones has missed his target in Michael Maguire.Credit:Getty
“Yep, that’s what I have set out to achieve, that’s the hunger of where I am as a coach at the moment,” he said.
“It’s been enjoyable to get back to the basics in where I started in coaching [with the Raiders position]. When you look at the fine detail, it’s actually beneficial not to have to steer an organisation at this current moment.
“That’s allowed me to focus on the players and the way the game is being played. That will help me long term with what I want to achieve as a head coach again.”
While the prospect of being involved in a Rugby World Cup held appeal, his focus is currently on winning a World Cup as coach of the Kiwis.
“I’m very hungry in that space as well,” he said.
“I’ve got an outstanding group of men in that Kiwi team, it hurt quite a bit to [be eliminated in the semi-final stage by eventual champions Australia].
“In three years time, the opportunity to go back and have another crack at that is a big driving force in what I want to do in rugby league.”
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