Rugby League: Smith to Take Gb Job

Tony Smith will today leave Leeds to take over as Great Britain's second coach from abroad, with his fellow Australian John Lang set to be appointed immediately to fill the resulting vacancy at Headingley.

Smith will succeed Brian Noble, whose contract was not renewed after Britain failed to reach the final of a second consecutive Tri-Nations series last autumn, in a new full-time role which also includes the development of British coaches. The contract will run until the end of next year's World Cup.

Unlike David Waite, who became the first Australian to coach the Lions in 2001 before handing over to Noble three years later, Smith has extensive knowledge of the British game, having played with Workington Town in 1996 and coached Huddersfield for three seasons before joining Leeds in 2004.

He made an immediate impact, guiding the Rhinos to victory in the grand final for a first Championship since 1972 in his first season in charge. They lost the grand final to Bradford and the Challenge Cup final to Hull in 2005, and failed to reach either final last year. But in their search for a new national coach the Rugby Football League are understood to have been equally impressed by the way Smith has developed young British coaching and playing talent, as Leeds have consistently fielded fewer overseas players than any other leading club, and he has also played a key role in the development of Jon Sharp, Steve McNamara and Brian McDermott, three of the brightest young British coaches in the Super League.

Any or all of those three will now be strong contenders to provide a British voice in the new coaching set-up, although Salford's Karl Harrison and Warrington's Paul Cullen will also be in contention. More details of the new set-up should follow when Smith's appointment is confirmed at a press conference today.

One of his first jobs will be to finalise details of the mid-season international Britain are to play in June as preparation for the home three-Test series against New Zealand in the autumn. Smith will then become coach of the England team who will play in the World Cup, with Britain splitting into the four home nations.

Lang, a former Queensland hooker who coached the representative team from Australia's breakaway Super League competition in a three-Test series in Great Britain in 1997, was also thought to be on the shortlist for the Lions job after leaving Penrith Panthers at the end of last season. But now it appears that he will fulfil an ambition to coach in England with Leeds, whose chief executive Gary Hetherington has always been an admirer.

Leeds will not have much time to make the transition. They have a straightforward Challenge Cup tie at home to Workington this Friday, but their next Super League match is a blockbusting derby at Bradford on Thursday week.