The Australian Rugby League Commission is reportedly in negotiations to extend the contract of Mal Meninga through to the end of 2025.
Meninga's contract currently expires on November 1 this year.
It could leave Australia in the fascinating position of not having a coach officially employed for the ongoing Pacific Cup tri-series final, should they make it, according to News Corp, even though Meninga will coach until the end of the series either way.
Meninga has been in charge of the Kangaroos for a number of years now and led the nation to victory at last year's Rugby League World Cup which was held in England.
The veteran coach, who led Queensland on an unprecedented run of State of Origin success before switching to the Kangaroos, has spoken openly about his love for international rugby league, and Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V'Landys said the desire is to get the contract of Meninga extended sooner rather than later.
“I would love for him to go on absolutely,” V'landys said.
“The coach of the Australian team is a decision for the Commission. We have some time to make a decision but we'll get it done sooner rather than later.
“He is the full package for us, so we would absolutely hope he goes on.”
A deal through to the end of 2025 as per the report would see Meninga remain in charge for next year's second edition of the Pacific Cup, where it's believed Tonga and Samoa will switch places (Tonga playing in the tri-series and Samoa, who made the final of last year's World Cup, heading to England) as well as Australia's 2025 tour of England for the Ashes.
It would come as little surprise however if any renewed deal went through to the end of 2026 when the Kangaroos will play the next World Cup which has been shrunk to ten teams and will be played somewhere in the southern hemisphere after France pulled out of hosting the tournament that was originally set for 2025.