Rugby: John Kirwan wants to stay and get an assistant

John Kirwan wants Tabai Matson on board and as his successor as coach of the Blues. Photo / Getty Images

Exclusive: Blues boss approaches board with plan to steal help from the Crusaders.

John Kirwan has told the Blues board he wants to stay at the Super Rugby franchise and has put forward a controversial plan which would see Tabai Matson as his assistant next year and head coach the year after.

Following Matson's move to head coach in 2017, Kirwan would move into a high performance-type role.

The Herald learned of Sir John's plea - understood to be given at Tuesday night's board meeting - late yesterday.

Tabai Matson.

It is unclear whether the board have signed off on it, but if they do it will cause immense friction with not only the Crusaders, for whom Matson is an assistant coach, but also potentially the provincial partners of the Blues.

Matson is on a New Zealand Rugby contract, rather than a Crusaders one, but had agreed to remain at the franchise until the end of next year.

When contacted about Kirwan's plan, Blues chief executive Michael Redman said there was no proposal to move Kirwan into a high performance role. Earlier in the day he denied the board had reached any decision, however, he didn't deny that Matson had been contacted about a role at the franchise.

"There is always speculation about who might be appropriate for any given role," Mr Redman said. "I've had a whole number of other names thrown at me in recent weeks about who is coming and who is not. We're not going to comment on speculation, but I can assure you that the board hasn't arrived at any decision."

In 2010, Matson, then an assistant coach at Canterbury, turned down an approach by the Blues following Shane Howarth's departure as assistant coach under Pat Lam.

When asked last night about his two-year plan, Sir John said: "I'm not going to comment on the board process."

Matson did not respond to a request for comment.

Earlier in a media conference ahead of tomorrow afternoon's match against the Force at Eden Park, Sir John, when asked about his future, replied: "I'm not worrying about it, to be honest. I've got to concentrate on winning football games, that's the best I can do."

There will be big changes among the coaching set-up next year regardless of whether Sir John's controversial plan is signed off or not.

The departure of Sir John's long-time assistant Grant Doorey to London Irish and Isa Nacewa to Leinster leaves the Blues short of defence and skills coaches.

The Blues franchise will also insist on appointing an attack coach next year after failing to fill the role in 2015, Kirwan instead taking that job on as well as the overarching role of head coach.