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Rugby League

Noble to quit GB post

02/05/2006

Brian Noble has suggested he will leave his post as the Great Britain coach to focus on the task at hand at new club Wigan.

Noble shocked rugby league two weeks ago when he resigned from champions Bradford Bulls to take on the daunting challenge of reviving the once-great Wigan club.

He won his first game in charge of the Warriors but admitted that there remains a vast amount of work to be done at the JJB Stadium.

And he added that he may need to relinquish his extensive duties as head coach of the national team in order to achieve all his goals.

Speaking to The Guardian, he revealed: "I am committed until the Tri-Nations late this year but this is my third season in charge and I'm not sure it can continue.

"I work full-time all year round and I have to look at what I need to do at Wigan. I'd love to coach England in the 2008 World Cup but, otherwise, I need to invest time in Wigan to succeed here. To be national coach on top of that would be very hard."

Noble, 45, has been in charge of the Great Britain team since replacing David Waite in 2004 and in that time has established a reputation as one of the game's most astute tacticians.

This has led to rumours linking the coach with a future role in Australian rugby league and he admits that this could be an option at some point in his career.

"I'd love one day to coach a top club over there. I'm fiercely patriotic and I'd love to prove some Poms do have brains," he revealed.

"Being Great Britain coach has helped my profile over there and I'm close to a number of Australians. So who knows."

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