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Cape Town - Ireland coach Joe Schmidt reportedly turned down an offer to work under his New Zealand counterpart Steve Hansen last year.
NZ Rugby CEO Steve Tew told the New Zealand Herald that they approached Schmidt about an assistant coaching position last year.
New Zealand asked Schmidt to replace retiring assistant coach Wayne Smith as part of the All Blacks' backroom team, with a view to potentially succeeding Hansen.
Schmidt, who was recently named 2018 World Rugby Coach of the Year, was tipped to take over from Hansen after the 2019 Rugby World Cup but he recently revealed that he will quit coaching after the showpiece event in Japan.
Hansen is expected to make an announcement about his future this week, with long-serving assistant coach Ian Foster being tipped as his possible replacement.
Since taking charge of Ireland in 2013, Schmidt has led them to Six Nations titles in 2014, 2015 and 2018. He also coached the Irish to their first win over New Zealand in Chicago in 2016 and a first victory over the All Blacks on home soil last month.
