Stacey Jones is excited to be rejoining the Warriors' coaching staff. Photo / Getty
Stacey Jones is excited to be rejoining the Warriors' coaching staff. Photo / Getty
When the call came, Stacey Jones didn't hesitate.
Although he admits it isn't "ideal timing", the Warriors legend will head across the Tasman on Monday, returning to the NRL team to be an assistant coach to Nathan Brown.
Jones had filled the same role under Stephen Kearney, and then caretakercoach Todd Payten, before coming home at the end of the 2020 season to work within the development system, after the strain of being away from his family proved too much.
But the sudden departure of recruitment manager Peter O'Sullivan prompted a backroom reshuffle, with former assistant Craig Hodges moving into a general manager role at the NRL franchise.
The club hierarchy wanted a Kiwi to replace Hodges and turned to Jones. His wife Rachelle, a schoolteacher, will stay in Auckland, along with their three children (William, 15, Waiana, 21, and Chellcey, 23).
"The club has been really good to me, they know what I can do and they saw me as a good fit," Jones told the Herald. "For me it was a really good opportunity, though probably not ideal timing. But these things, sometimes, they never are ideal.
"My wife was really good about it. She knows that the opportunity is something that I couldn't really turn down. We're hoping that the border restrictions will be a little bit easier and she'll be able to come over or I'll be able to pop home if there is an opportunity."
Jones didn't miss the NRL involvement "that much" last season, and thoroughly enjoyed his work in pathways and development alongside Tony Iro, though the club have been unable to field any junior teams since the beginning of the Covid pandemic.
"We have got some really good kids, but we haven't been able to test them playing wise," said Jones. "So that's been really difficult for them and us."
The 46-test Kiwi is sad to be leaving that space, but excited about the new challenge, after building considerable experience with the clipboard.
Stacey Jones will be in charge of running the Warriors' attack. Photo / Getty
He took the 2014 Junior Warriors to the NYC title, then coached the Warriors' reserve grade side for two seasons. He was Kearney's assistant for three seasons and has also been part of the Kiwis environment, most recently as an assistant to Michael Maguire.
"There are lots of different things that you can take from every coach you work under," said Jones. "I've just got to make sure that whatever I do, I've got to be 100 per cent confident in my ability."
While he wasn't involved last season, Jones is familiar with Brown. He worked with the Australian during the pre-season last year, when half the squad trained in Auckland, and also the previous season, when Brown had a consultant stint.
"I spoke to him regularly last season," said Jones. "So I know what he wants and he is obviously committed to me to come on board and knows what I can bring in."
Jones will run the team's attack, with Brown taking a helicopter view, while Justin Morgan and Slade Griffin work on the defensive systems. Jones, 45, is determined to make a mark, after being content in the background during previous roles.
"I probably sat back a little bit in the past and let other people take on a more dominant role, only because of the experience that they had," he said. "And now that I've got that experience, I'm just gonna go in there and make sure I do things how I want them done and back myself.
"I took on the role of leading the attack when Todd took over as head coach and felt I did a pretty good job there. But obviously I have to get Brownie's confidence in what I can do."
But what about a head coaching role – is that a future aspiration for Jones? There have only been a handful of New Zealanders in the top job at NRL level while two of the last six Kiwis coaches have been Australian (Daniel Anderson and Maguire).
"I'll never say never to those opportunities, but you've got to make sure that you're ready for that," said Jones. "I guess next year is going to be a big step up for me to think, yeah, maybe one day I can.
"It's really important that we try and develop from our own systems so if I sit back and say I don't want to be a head coach I'm probably doing an injustice to the Warriors, because we want our coaches to move forward.
"So yeah, If I feel ready and there's an opportunity to do that - why not? [But] at the moment, there's no real, 'I want to be a head coach right now'."
