Ospreys eye swoop for former Wales coach
Ospreys have been searching for a head coach for over six months
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Wednesday, 07, Jan 2009 10:35
The Ospreys have contacted the USA national side in an attempt to get former Wales coach Scott Johnson to become head coach.
Johnson is currently an assistant to former Gloucester chief Nigel Melville who is currently in charge of the Eagles.
Melville revealed the Ospreys had approached the US about the possibility of Johnson taking over from Lyn Jones who left the club at the end of last season following five years in Swansea.
The Ospreys have already been turned down by New Zealand assistants Steve Hansen, himself a former Wales coach, and Wayne Smith and are currently being coached on a caretaker basis by Sean Holley.
Welsh club have reportedly proposed a deal that would allow Johnson to retain his duties with the Eagles and Melville said the move could have benefits for the US side.
He told the Daily Telegraph: "We could tell the Ospreys to go away, but we're looking at it in terms of whether there's an advantage for us as well as them.
"When Scott isn't coaching the Eagles, what should he be doing? If he's coaching in a professional environment, that's a good thing. We have, at the last count, 18 players playing overseas, most of them in Europe.
"Having Scott in Wales would give us a much better opportunity to keep a close eye on those players, and to monitor their development."
Australian-born Johnson was with Wales between 2001 and 2007, performing a number of roles from skills coach to a short period when he was caretaker coach when Hansen left for New Zealand.
Despite not having filled Jones' position on a full-time basis since he left the Ospreys are currently top of the Magners League and have qualified for the semi-finals of the EDF Energy Cup.