Andrew Johns - After Retirement

After Retirement

Johns sought to celebrate the inclusion of Australia's Dally Messenger in the original All Golds tour, Andrew Johns had been invited to join the New Zealand team for the match against the Northern Union. However, due to his career ending neck injury, he was obviously unable to play with the squad. Queensland & Australian five-eighth Darren Lockyer was invited to take John's place but ironically, Lockyer himself was ruled out after suffering a season ending knee injury. New Zealand Warriors captain and Queensland front rower Steve Price was the eventual replacement for the match. Andrew became a commentator for Channel 9 and Monday Night Football on Triple M radio.

He is a republican.

On 22 April in Round 6 of 2007, Newcastle held special farewell celebrations for Andrew Johns in the Knights home game against Brisbane. The Knights board renamed the new $30 million East grandstand of EnergyAustralia Stadium the "Andrew Johns Stand". In addition, in a first for the NRL, his number 7 jersey was retired for the match with new young half back Jarrod Mullen wearing number 18. Later in the year the Knights would name Johns as halfback and captain for their commemorative 'Team of the Era'.

In June 2007, in what would be the first of his involvement as a specialist part-time coach, rival code the Australian Rugby Union hired Johns as the Wallabies in-play kicking coach for the duration of the 2007 Tri Nations Series. On 27 October 2007, Johns married his partner Cathrine Mahoney in a secret wedding on a Sydney island. When Johns returned from his honeymoon at the beginning of the 2008 Pre-season, he began a part-time coaching role with the Parramatta Eels, working one-on-one with Eels halves Brett Finch & Tim Smith. In the same time-frame Johns worked with his old club the Newcastle Knights in a similar skills specific coaching role. The third club to hire Johns for his coaching services was the Canterbury Bulldogs, who signed Johns for the 2008 season. The role will involve him specifically working with the halves, hookers and backs.

In February 2008, a year after his retirement, Johns moved a step closer to becoming rugby league's next Immortal after being named the 'Best Player of the Last 30 Years' by major rugby league magazine. This came to frutition on 28 September 2012, when Johns was officially announced as the eighth 'Immortal' of the game.

On 17 April 2008 he was named in Team of the Century at halfback by a 28-man judging panel, who voted in a secret ballot and chose the team from an original list of the 100 Greatest Players named earlier in the year. Later, Johns stated he felt "the game has forgiven me".

On 9 September 2008 at the Dally M awards in Sydney, Johns and his wife Catherine announced they were expecting their first child in March 2009. Johns has a son from his previous marriage.

On 2 March 2009, Johns and wife Catherine welcomed their first child and son Louis Byron

In 2010 the Melbourne Rebels announced they had secured the services of Johns to work with the Super Rugby clubs' inside backs. Recent Rebels' signing James O'Connor said "Obviously he comes from a league background but there was nobody better at taking the ball to the line and pulling those balls back... the chance to work with him was pretty awesome."

In early November 2012, Johns officially signed on as assistant coach of the Manly Sea Eagles for the 2013 Rugby League season in which he'll also have mentoring and ambassadorial roles.