KEY POINTS:
Incumbent All Black coach Graham Henry is being persuaded to defend his job.
The 61-year-old was irritated having to justify his tenure at an extensive annual review and annoyed enough when told he would have to reapply that his initial reaction was to bypass the New Zealand Rugby
Union offer.
But the more he has listened to a close circle of confidants, the more Henry has been swayed to run for office again. He has been through a week when he has churned through a range of emotions from anger to defiance.
He is still peeved he, Steve Hansen and Wayne Smith were not reappointed after rolling out their explanation dossiers on this season and the World Cup quarter-final failure against France.
Henry is still grizzly and has three days for further mood swings before he has to submit an All Black coaching application by the Monday night deadline. Some believe his attitude will alter several times and he may ignore the chance.
But Henry has been leaned on to stand for himself and his colleagues' future, otherwise the smart money is that Robbie Deans will win by default.
That outcome would, potentially, leave the NZRU facing even greater dramas because Blues coach David Nucifora would then ease into the Wallaby job which is being reserved for Deans until the All Black vacancy is decided.
If Deans and Nucifora were both chosen for international duty, the NZRU should remove both from Super 14 duties though they would face compelling arguments from the franchises because of the late notice.
Meanwhile, Henry is indignant about having to reapply. He feels the NZRU knows all it needs to about his record, performance and pedigree and that of his assistants.
Part of his pique will also include the apprehension that, having being snubbed once by the NZRU, he could suffer the same fate in a duel with Deans. He has had to judge the board's mood and whether to go to an election and risk defeat in what would be an even more undignified end to his All Black coaching career.
Either way Henry's pride is being challenged. He could coach again at international level but this is his last shot at the All Blacks, his only chance of redemption.
In his review, Henry used his All Black record, experience and the inadequate refereeing of Wayne Barnes and his World Cup linesmen to build his case for retention.
Detractors point to the side's mental fragility, poor selections for the quarter-final and lack of matchplay as core reasons for a coaching change.
The subplots have been Henry's absence of contrition about his strategies and the concern that a Deans elevation would bring him into renewed conflict with his former Crusaders boss and NZRU chief executive designate Steve Tew. Another twist is that the Henry camp may yet promote Hansen, who is a long-term cohort of Tew, as an alternative if the board feels Henry is past his use-by date.
However, if Henry does not stand or is defeated, then it would seem a dubious policy to promote his deputy.
