in the Heineken Cup. He was also assistant coach of Wales during the 1993–94 season. Wales national team Jenkins was first proposed as a candidate for the job of Wales coach by First Minister of Wales Rhodri Morgan in 2002, following the departure of Graham Henry. Steve Hansen took over from Henry for the 2002 Six Nations, before being given the role on a permanent basis. When Hansen left after the 2004 Six Nations, Jenkins and Mike Ruddock were seen as the leading candidates to replace him. Jenkins was the only one of the five regional coaches to put himself forward for the role, and was one of 15 total applicants, along with Harlequins coach Mark Evans and former Canada coach Dave Clark; Jenkins and Evans were the only applicants invited for a second interview. Despite Jenkins being viewed as the front-runner for the position, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) approached Ruddock and named him as Hansen's successor ahead of Jenkins on 11 March 2004. Jenkins said he felt humiliated by the decision, and accused a member of the selection panel of "a complete lack of integrity", while Scarlets chief executive Stuart Gallacher criticised the WRU for their decision, saying Jenkins might have permanently lost the chance to coach Wales. In October 2004, Jenkins was named as part of Clive Woodward's British & Irish Lions coaching team for their tour to New Zealand in 2005, with a specific focus on coaching the teams that would play in the midweek matches. He called the appointment "the pinnacle of [his] coaching career to date", following in the footsteps of his former Llanelli coach Carwyn James, who had led the Lions to a series victory over New Zealand on the 1971 tour. Jenkins was initially the only Welsh coach selected by Woodward, after the WRU barred all the members of the Wales coaching staff from being part of the Lions tour; they ultimately allowed Mike Ruddock to be part of the Lions coaching team, but no other members of the Wales backroom staff. The Lions won all five of their midweek matches on tour, including a 109–6 victory over Manawatu; however, they lost the test series 3–0. When Mike Ruddock resigned as Wales coach two games into the 2006 Six Nations Championship, less than a year after leading Wales to their first Grand Slam since 1978, Jenkins distanced himself from the role, saying