St Helens interview former England rugby union star for head coaching job
Ben Te'o has been interviewed by St Helens.
St Helens have interviewed former dual-code international Ben Te’o as a potential candidate to succeed Paul Rowley: but he looks set to spurn interest from the Super League giants.
The Saints are scouring the globe for Rowley’s successor at the club, with an appointment expected to be made well in advance of pre-season training starting later this year.
They are prioritising Australian-based coaches, with the club exploring all options in the NRL – and Te’o has emerged as a perhaps surprise frontrunner.
However, they may well now miss out on him, with interest elsewhere.
St Helens ‘interview’ Ben Te’o for job
Reports in Australia have suggested that the Saints had sat down with Te’o with a view to him taking the job, with a formal interview taking place.
The current Queensland assistant coach is a man in demand though, and it has been suggested that Te’o is set to reject any interest from the Saints about taking their job in 2027.
It is reported that Te’o is ‘unlikely’ to move overseas – but crucially, he has little interest in replacing Billy Slater as head coach of the Maroons too.
That is because Te’o is being ‘headhunted’ to link up with Wayne Bennett at South Sydney Rabbitohs as an assistant coach next season, with his preference a move into NRL coaching instead of either the Maroons job or a switch to Super League.
That would represent an obvious blow for the Saints, who had lined up Te’o as a lead candidate to take charge and replace Rowley going into the 2027 season.
They may now have to turn their attention elsewhere and look at other candidates – but an appointment is still expected to be made before the end of the current Super League season.
The Saints’ options without Te’o
Reports last week suggested that the club were looking at former Dragons boss Shane Flanagan as a contender for the role, but it appears unlikely that he would be considered at this stage.
Instead, the Saints are scouring the Australian market for a young coach in a similar mould to Justin Holbrook and Kristian Woolf, both of whom came to Super League with little to no reputation in club coaching but enjoyed immense success.
The Saints are looking for a long-term appointment, with the club keen to back any head coach in the transfer market too. They have already signed Catalans centre Solomona Faataape and are likely to have a big overhaul in their squad this winter.
That would include existing contracted players being moved on, too.
