NSW great and eighth Immortal Andrew Johns has poured icy cold water over the momentum building for him to take over as the NSW's head coach in State of Origin.
Series-winning coach Laurie Daley is all but confirmed to be stepping down after a thrilling 2026 campaign, with plenty calling for 'Joey' to take over the helm.
The Newcastle Knights legend shows grand passion and tenacity for the Origin arena, making him a favourite among the state to take over from Daley.
Momentum started generating when his brother Matthew Johns was live-on-air and announced he would be interested if he and his brother were involved.
Although Joey says he will not be the NSW Blues head coach in 2027, putting the conversations to bed and firmly stating he won't be enduring the role.
“It's not gonna happen, so stop talking about it,” Johns said on Wide World of Sports' Immortal Behaviour.
“I was down the beach this morning and all the old blokes were asking, 'Are you gonna coach? … No, it's not gonna happen.
“What is it - if hell freezes over? It won't happen, stop talking about it.”
Earlier this week, Daley appeared on Freddy and the Eighth, endorsing Johns to take on the role and back himself, but with other commitments and a lack of coaching experience, he declared himself uninterested.
Johns also cited the scrutiny Daley fell under during this year's series as to why he wouldn't put himself in the representative arena.
“Talking to him and the effect it had on him, I don't know why anyone wants to do it,” he added.
With Ivan Cleary looking to be an available candidate for 2028, the Blues will have to fill the void next year if they choose to pursue the four-time premiership-winning Penrith coach.
Daley was full of praise for his assistant coaches during the series, indicating they could withstand the heat and excel in the Origin arena.
He also felt a coach would find it difficult juggling both a full-time NRL coaching gig and the pressures of the Origin series.
“I think there's a lot of people out there who could do it, but a lot of people don't understand the scrutiny that comes with a position like that,” Daley said on Nine's Freddy and the Eighth.
“If you were an NRL coach, I don't know if you'd be able to combine both, because there's plenty of work that goes into it. The coaching staff that I had would all do a fantastic job - Matt King, Boyd Cordner, Brett White - those guys are working in club level and have been assistants for a number of years.
“If there was someone with NRL coaching experience that was not working at a club, they'd be up for it as well, so I think there's a number of people able to do it.”
Daley's Blues side won Games 1 and 3 of the 2026 series, headlined by a gallant deciding performance in front of 50,000 Queensland fans at Suncorp Stadium.
