Cheika gets first rugby league head coach role

Former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika is taking on his first head coach role in rugby league, leading the Lebanon Cedars.

Cheika, whose parents are from Lebanon, will coach the Cedars in next year's Rugby League World Cup in England after a successful stint in 2020 with Trent Robinson's coaching group at the Sydney Roosters.

"It's an unbelievable opportunity for me to do something that represents the land where my parents came from," Cheika told News Corp.

NSW Origin coach Brad Fittler was at the helm during Lebanon's last Rugby League World Cup campaign.

Cheika said he had tears of joy watching Lebanon make the quarter-finals in the 2017 tournament.

"That tournament was a chance to show a little bit of the Lebanese culture not to just Australians but for everyone who was watching on TV," he said.

"Sport has an ability to bring people together, it brings out the best in people. I was watching those games, jumping up and down cheering and crying at times.

"There is something about being Lebanese, you can never put your finger on it. I'm born here but when I went there as an adult the first time we landed in Beirut, I really felt a strong connection to the place."

The 53-year-old has most recently held an assistant coaching role with Argentina's national rugby side but was excited by the challenge of taking on the rival code, having played league growing up.

"I'm still ambitious as a coach because I love it, I can't help it. I'm here with Argentina now because I love it. I just want it to unfold naturally. Being with the Roosters, it's been insightful but I'm going to take every day as it comes and see what happens from there," he said.

"The NRL in particular is very challenging. It's something we don't see as rugby coaches in the Southern Hemisphere – 24 games back to back and then finals – it's a marathon and it's a different style of coaching to 14 games of Super Rugby and 15 Test matches over a scattered period.

"There are technical differences between the codes but the intent is still the same, it's a contact sport.

"I've grown up playing league and have been an avid follower of the game and I have been learning about the technical side of things at the Roosters."