Macqueen to coach Rebels

Sydney - World Cup-winning coach Rod Macqueen has been appointed the coaching director and head coach of the Melbourne Rebels for three years, team officials said on Wednesday.

Macqueen, who coached the Wallabies to the 1999 World Cup, has come out of an almost decade-long retirement to accept the challenge of putting together Australia's fifth Super rugby team in their inaugural Super 15 season in 2011.

Macqueen has not been involved with full-time coaching since stepping away from the Wallabies in 2001.

He is arguably Australia's most successful national coach, winning 34 of his 43 Tests, and during his 1997-2001 tenure Australia held every international trophy on offer.

Macqueen said his initial consultancy work with those involved in the Rebels' Super 15 bid re-ignited his passion to coach, saying it was a great opportunity.

"It made me think I'd like to have a bigger involvement, because there's something special that can happen in this area (Melbourne)," Macqueen said at the announcement.

"We want to take the team to the community, we want to embrace the community, and we want the team to put back into the community."

Macqueen's appointment follows the Rebels' signing of Melbourne Storm National Rugby League boss Brian Waldron as chief executive earlier this week.

He said the Rebels wanted to build a winning culture and not splurge on coaxing current Wallabies, overseas internationals and would-be rugby league converts into their ranks.

"We don't want players coming here for the money," Macqueen said.

"We don't want money to be the motivation, we want it to be a consequence of what they do.

"That comes into the sort of culture we want to build here."

Macqueen's assistant at the Rebels will be Sydney University club coach Damian Hill.