KEY POINTS:
If groans of despair were heard around New Zealand after Graham Henry's appointment, none was louder than that from David Nucifora.
On hearing Robbie Deans had missed the All Black job and was back in the frame to coach the Wallabies, the Blues coach knew his own chances were dead.
Only two weeks ago Nucifora was the short-odds favourite for the Wallaby job and confirmation he had missed out came on Friday afternoon. But Nucifora had been resigned to his fate for most of last week.
"I wasn't surprised," said Nucifora yesterday from the Blues training base in Mt Albert. "Once Robbie Deans put his hand up it was obvious which way things were going to pan out.
"But if you are going to be in this business then you have to be a realist. I had my head around that and that is the way it is."
Nucifora's take-it-on-the-chin attitude epitomises how the other Australian candidates feel at missing out to a Kiwi. There is no gnashing of teeth, no public sniping, not even a dropped hint of bitterness.
As far as Nucifora is concerned, the decision to appoint the man deemed the second-best coach in New Zealand does not reflect badly on the Australian talent pool.
"All that means to me is that they [Australian Rugby Union] were after a certain type of coach with particular strengths. I would not say that Robbie Deans is the second-best coach in New Zealand."
The challenge now for Nucifora is to get back into a gallop with the Blues. The coaching sagas have been disruptive for franchises on both sides of the Tasman, particularly for the Blues and Crusaders.
However much they aspire to uphold professional values, the players will have been distracted in recent weeks by the uncertainty and possibility of changes in coaching staff.
It's a point Nucifora himself concedes but says the focus will return immediately.
"I would be lying if I said this whole business hasn't been a distraction. But I have an opportunity to gain more experience here with the Blues and move forward. There have been other distractions, like not knowing the rules of the game we are going to be playing, but all that has been sorted now and we can get on with it."
