KEY POINTS:
Hurricanes coach Colin Cooper will be first out of the chute when interviews for the All Blacks head coaching job begin this afternoon in Wellington.
The NZRU board will interview the four short-listed candidates in alphabetical order. That means Cooper will be first to press his case, followed
by Robbie Deans and Ian Foster. Incumbent Graham Henry will have the chance to make a lasting final impression when he fronts the panel this evening.
The board is to reconvene tomorrow morning and its decision will likely be revealed later in the day. Rugby committee chairman Mike Eagle will chair the board for the interviews and the subsequent meeting to discuss the appointment.
Regular chairman Jock Hobbs has withdrawn from the selection process as he is Deans' brother-in-law. The NZRU board has two members from each of the northern, central and southern regions; one Maori rugby representative; and two independent directors.
The union's president and vice-president can attend and participate in meetings but do not have a vote. The geographic split among the eight vote-holding members is six-two in favour of the North Island. Four of the board are based in Wellington, while the others are from Northland, King Country, Canterbury and Marlborough.
THE BOARD MEMBERS
President: Andy Leslie (Wellington)
Former All Black with 32 tests to his name.
Vice president: John Sturgeon (Greymouth)
A veteran administrator who managed the All Blacks from 1988-1991.
NORTHERN REPRESENTATIVES
Ivan Haines (King Country)
Former chairman of the King Country RFU and chairman of the Chiefs board.
Warwick Syers (Northland)
Former Northland RFU chairman and former member of the Blues Board. An accountant.
CENTRAL REPRESENTATIVE
Graham Mourie (Wellington)
61 games for the All Blacks. Captain from 1976-1982. A coach and administrator with Wellington.
SOUTHERN REPRESENTATIVES
Mike Eagle (Canterbury)
Rugby committee chairman. A Christchurch-based director of an electrical contracting company.
Mark Peters (Blenheim)
An accountant. Chaired the Marlborough RFU from 1995-2001.
MAORI REPRESENTATIVE
Paul Quinn (Wellington)
Former New Zealand Maori and Wellington captain. Joined the board in April 2002.
INDEPENDENT MEMBERS
Ken Douglas (Wellington)
Former president of the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions. Expert in labour relations.
Bill Thurston (Wellington)
A lawyer who worked as general counsel for Fletcher Challenge.
Jock Hobbs (chairman, Wellington)
Former All Blacks captain. Elected to the NZRU board in 2002. Has withdrawn from selection process as he is Deans' brother-in-law.