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The NZRL will change their stance on demanding the Kiwis coach lives in New Zealand and are not ruling out appointing an Australian should Gary Kemble get the sack.
Kemble's position will be reviewed when the tour to Britain and France is over but NZRL boss Andrew Chalmers says the Kiwis would need to produce "two strong performances" for Kemble to keep his job.
His side went into this morning's final test with Great Britain following a record-breaking 44-0 defeat in Hull last weekend. The criticism and scrutiny he has faced in recent weeks has made his position untenable.
Kemble succeeded Brian McClennan, who was forced to resign after accepting the job with Leeds. McClennan had hoped to combine both jobs, at least until the end of next year's World Cup, but the NZRL stipulated he must be resident in New Zealand.
The national body are reconsidering this policy, particularly since they have employed Graham Lowe as director of football and Tony Kemp as high performance director.
"At the moment we have adopted a policy of supporting coaches who are resident in New Zealand and that policy is unchanged," Chalmers said. "Might that change in the future? It's very possible. Nothing is set in stone."
That would appear to open the way for McClennan to return as Kiwis coach should Kemble be sacked as expected - but this is highly unlikely.
It's difficult to see McClennan returning to the position under the present administration of Chalmers and Lowe, especially as it's understood he was considering quitting even before he was forced to resign because he couldn't work with the pair.
If the NZRL were to change the rule, it might open the way for the likes of Wayne Bennett, who recently coached the All Golds, or Wests Tigers boss Tim Sheens.
Either one would bring tremendous experience to the role and, at the very least, the NZRL would want a first-grade coach.
That would rule out Melbourne assistant Stephen Kearney as well as Wellington coach Paul Bergman, who is understood to be mulling over offers from two NRL clubs to join them as an assistant coach.
Assistant Phil Prescott was originally touted as Kemble's long-term successor but he might be tainted by results on tour.
Kemble went into this morning's test under immense pressure and knowing his job is on the line. Even if the Kiwis did manage to upset Great Britain a lot of damage has been done in the eyes of the public and he has also struggled to earn the respect of the players.
Two weeks ago, Roy Asotasi told the Herald on Sunday the senior players told Kemble what they expected of him as a coach given that they were used to NRL environments and that they needed to be challenged. Asotasi hardly gave him a glowing endorsement, saying Kemble had "a lot of work to do".
Hooker Dene Halatau said Kemble had grown as a coach over the past three weeks and had agreed to allow the players to adopt a theme for the third test of 'what it takes to be Kiwi-hard'. McClennan used themes extensively during his watch.
"That was great for us to do that," Halatau said. "It worked [in the past], so why not carry on with it? On previous tours we had a sports psychologist and mental preparation and motivation was what half our training was based around.
"Gary's learning and has been bouncing a lot of things off the senior guys, which is the right thing to do. from week one to where we are at now, he's taken a lot on board and made adjustments, which has pleased the boys. It made things a lot more harmonious when we did that before the first test over here."
Kemble was miffed about the need to motivate players in the international game.
"A lot of things Bluey brought in, the players wanted to keep which, at the end of the day, worked once," Kemble said. "It's entrenched, probably. But we have tried to emphasise the way we do things. In the long run it's going to work.
"[My approach is] attention to detail and getting a bit of pride in the jersey without other people having to motivate you. Motivation should come from within. We shouldn't have to motivate them to play for the Kiwis. We shouldn't have to bring people in to motivate them. But, hey, I might be wrong."
Some of Kemble's comments have disappointed a number inside and outside the squad.
Last week he said some players weren't up to international standard and that the high number of injuries had severely weakened the squad. This only deflated the players when it was felt Kemble should have been backing them publicly.
Chalmers made it clear that, while they supported Kemble, there needed to be significant improvement for him to remain as coach.
"We fully support Gary and the coaching staff but we need two strong performances in the last two games," Chalmers said.
"The NZRL won't shy away from making tough decisions if they are warranted. No matter how many people we will upset, we will make whatever changes we think are necessary."
While Kemble knows the clock is ticking, he's not ready to give up on a job he first applied for in the late 1990s.
"I will have to look at [my position] after the French game," he said.
"If someone says to me that it's beneficial for the Kiwis to not have me here, then I will have to make a decision.
"But I believe I am a damn good coach and I've had over 15 years experience coaching. I'm 100 per cent sure that I'm good enough to take them to the World Cup.
"I didn't give up to get the job and I'm not going to give up with the job."
