KEY POINTS:
Robbie Deans will be the next All Black coach but it's believed he will stay with the Crusaders until after their 2008 campaign and that the NZRU are not keen on hiring Vern Cotter as his assistant.
The All Black coaching job deadline is November 26 and while all Super 14 and provincial coaches as well as the incumbent All Black trio have been invited to apply, Deans is expected to be successful.
Graham Henry says he is undecided about whether he will try to stay in his post but is understood to have little appetite to go through a competitive process.
His assistant, Steve Hansen, might stand but despite enjoying four largely successful years in his role as forwards coach, is unlikely to be appointed ahead of Deans.
Deans is well known to the NZRU board having served as All Black coaching co-ordinator between 2001 and 2003. His record with the Crusaders is unparalleled - in eight campaigns he has won four titles, made another three finals and a semifinal.
But while Deans's credentials are impeccable, it is understood that he will need to convince the NZRU board that he can handle the off-field aspects of the job.
Relations with sponsors and media nose-dived when Deans served under head coach John Mitchell in 2001-2003 and the NZRU will need to be reassured that no such decline would recur if the Cantabrian takes over.
Under Henry, the All Blacks made massive strides in restoring their public image and relations with key sponsors, broadcasters and media improved dramatically.
Prime evidence of how much progress Henry made on that front came late last year when Italian-based vehicle manufacturer Iveco signed a major sponsorship deal.
The NZRU have set the All Blacks up as the key financial driver of New Zealand rugby. To continue winning sponsorship and drive merchandise sales, the team need to maintain a positive and marketable brand.
Having seen Mitchell ousted for failing to deal with the commercial side of the job, Deans is unlikely to underestimate the importance of those off-field responsibilities.
It would also seem inevitable now that Deans will have no choice but to work with incumbent All Black manager Darren Shand, whose contract was extended for another two years before the World Cup.
Sources in Christchurch say Deans is not a huge admirer of Shand. But with the latter having been instrumental in restoring the All Blacks public image it might be that the NZRU give Deans no option and keep Shand there to ensure the new coaching team and players continue to honour their commercial obligations.
Who forms the other part of the coaching team is one of trickier issues to be resolved. It is understood Deans wants to work with former Crusaders assistant Cotter.
The two men worked well together in 2005 and 2006, winning two Super 14 titles, until Cotter was head-hunted by Montferrand where he took the previously struggling side to the final of the French championship this year.
The NZRU, though, are reluctant to see someone working overseas leap-frog New Zealand-based coaches such as Colin Cooper and Ian Foster who have worked their way up domestic channels.
Cooper also had a brief stint as Deans assistant at the Crusaders before he was appointed head coach of the Hurricanes in 2003. While Deans and Cooper could work amicably, the NZRU would need to decide whether the latter has enough experience and ability to be installed at the highest level.
The NZRU would also have to consider the impact on Super 14 if Deans and Cooper are appointed.
This year's Super 14 was decimated by the decision to leave 22 leading All Blacks out of the first seven rounds. Both the Crusaders and Hurricanes, finalists in 2006, were heavily hit, losing 13 players between them to the reconditioning programme.
Robbing both sides of their head coach just weeks before the competition starts would leave them in disarray, particularly the Crusaders whose current assistant Mark Hammett is light on experience and not yet ready to step into the top job.
It is understood that Deans will be allowed to remain with the Crusaders in 2008 if he wins the All Black job, so as to prevent more Super 14 carnage.
Australian Rugby Union boss John O'Neill said earlier this year that they wanted Deans to be the next Wallaby coach and that if he agreed, they would encourage him to stay with the Crusaders before making the switch.
As a Super 14 coach Deans would be conducting in-depth analysis of all New Zealand's players anyway.
The NZRU has been prepared to be flexible in the past as in 2004, both Wayne Smith and Hansen were appointed All Black assistants in February but didn't leave their respective posts at Northampton and Wales until early May.
