Steve Hansen may stay on as All Blacks head coach beyond next year’s British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, he revealed this week.
Hansen led New Zealand to World Cup victory last year in England and after the final said he would be staying on until the Lions come to town in 2017.
Beyond that, Hansen had initially suggested he thought it might be best for the All Blacks to have a new man at the helm.
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But the former Wales coach, whose All Blacks became the first team to win consecutive World Cups, appears to have softened his view.
"I'm probably 50/50," Hansen told local media on Saturday about whether he will recommit beyond 2017.
"Once I get back into it and get a feel for what's happening I'll probably make a decision within the next six months.
"It's mainly changed because of the conversations I've had with people. They're persuading me to be a little bit more flexible in how I see it.
"It [All Black coach] comes with a lot of responsibility and I don't want to just do it because you have a shot at history. It doesn't matter who is coaching this rugby team in 2019, they will have a shot at back to back to back.
Huge responsibility
"It's not the right reason to do it for personal glory. The right reason to do it is that I still believe, and others in the team still believe, I have got something to offer.
"There's a part of me who would never want to stop coaching the All Blacks because it's become part of my life. You can't get a better job. But, again, it's not the right reason to do it either. So you have to make a really strong decision.
"The biggest expectations we have in the team is the team first and individuals second. If it's right for the team and my family, then I may continue to do it."
