Jamie Joseph’s six-word reply when asked about interest in Wallabies job

Jamie Joseph isn’t interested in the Wallabies’ top job, with the Highlanders head coach instead focused on this year’s Super Rugby Pacific season. Joseph was asked about the soon-to-be vacant role on Friday, but the world-renowned coach couldn’t have been clearer in reply.

After leading the Highlanders to the club’s maiden Super Rugby title in 2015 and then Japan to the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals in 2019, Joseph emerged as one of the world’s leading coaches, and the New Zealander’s influence remains just as important today.

Joseph returned to the deep south of Dunedin in early 2024 as the Highlanders’ Head of Rugby, later replacing Clarke Dermody as the team’s head coach from this season. The Landers started their new campaign with a heartbreaking one-point loss to the Waratahs in Sydney.

Both Joseph and co-captain Timoci Tavatavanawai fronted the media after the match at Allianz Stadium as they continued to come to terms with the agonising defeat. But, after talking about the Super Rugby fixture for five or so minutes, the coach was asked about the Wallabies.

With Joe Schmidt opting not to stay on as head coach beyond The Rugby Championship, Rugby Australia has confirmed a replacement will be appointed at a later date. But Joseph won’t be the person to succeed Schmidt, with the 55-year-old making that clear with a six-word reply.

“No mate, no. I’m a Highlander,” Joseph told reporters on Friday.

Joseph’s Highlanders started their season with a last-minute loss on Friday evening. Former All Blacks Sevens ace Caleb Tangitau wowed spectators with an impressive double, and the visitors were in the box seat right up until almost full-time.

Replacement Cam Miller converted a try in the 72^nd minute to put the Highlanders up by six and time was quickly running out for Dan McKellar’s Waratahs. But, with a never-say-die attitude, the Tahs sent the home crowd into a frenzy with a last-gasp try.

Siosifa Amone completed a double off the pine to reduce the deficit to just a single point, which set the stage for Jack Bowen to be the hero with time up on the clock. The playmaker converted the score to hand the Tahs a thrilling one-point win to start their new era under McKellar.

“It was a real arm wrestle in quite trying conditions [for] us coming from the south and then coming over here, it’s reasonably humid, the ball’s slippery and it was a pretty scrappy game actually. That’s part of it I guess,” Joseph reflected.

“Two teams that really wanted to go at each other, two teams that really wanted to win that first match, that was evident.

“I guess immediately after the game all my focus is how did we lose that game? It wasn’t necessarily the last moment for us, it was just the accuracy around the game where we conceded two yellow cards. That zapped a lot of energy out of our boys and that paid in the end.

“At the end of the day, I thought our players played very well in a tough match, in tough conditions. Really proud of their efforts but we’ve got to learn a couple of lessons, don’t we, to ensure we get it sorted out by next week.”

It doesn’t get much easier for Joseph’s Highlanders who will look to bounce back against defending champions the Blues at Forsyth Barr Stadium next Saturday.

After that, they’ll take on Moana Pasifika, the Hurricanes and Queensland Reds to round out their first five matches of the 2025 season.