The man who convinced Alan Jones to apply for the Wallabies coaching job said he hoped the Australian Rugby Union would now give the broadcaster a "good hearing".

Jones officially announced on Friday that he would apply for the Wallabies role vacated by World Cup coach John Connolly.

He told a Sydney press conference that discussions with Queensland Rugby Union chairman Peter Lewis swayed him to become a candidate.

Lewis was ecstatic but urged the ARU to take Jones' application seriously.

"I'm absolutely delighted and I hope he gets a good hearing," he told AAP.

Lewis was largely ridiculed when he publicly put forward Jones as a Wallabies coaching candidate - 20 years after the Grand Slam winning coach last held the national reins.

However, public support has started to turn and Lewis said more and more prominent figures had privately rung him to back his idea.

Lewis also kept in touch with Jones, conversations the broadcaster credited with convincing him to nominate for the Wallabies job by Friday's 5pm AEDT deadline.

"I have had a couple of brief conversations with Alan, just to pass onto him the support that I have had to encourage him to apply," Lewis said.

"Interestingly in the past few days I have spoken to (ex-Wallabies flanker) Greg Cornelsen, (former All Blacks winger) Grant Batty and (ex-Australian hooker) Bill Ross - all of whom say it's an inspired idea and supported 100 per cent.

"They thought it would be fantastic for Australian rugby."

Former Brumbies mentor and current Blues coach David Nucifora is the new favourite for the Wallabies job after Kiwi Robbie Deans withdrew to push his cause for the All Blacks.

But Lewis was adamant that Jones should not be discarded as a candidate despite his 20-year absence from the game.

"It's like riding a bike. The fact that you haven't done it for a while doesn't mean you have lost your knowledge or skill," he said.

"What prompted me to do this was a very brief conversation six months ago when I asked him what he thought of the state of the game and he gave me some insightful views."

"He demonstrated that he is an absolute student of the game."

Lewis said the laughs had started to die down since he first suggested Jones to an unsuspecting public.

"When I first came up with the idea in France travelling with some friends they all laughed me down but I debated it with them and said `think about what's wrong, think about who's available (to coach)'," he said.

"There's no denying he's got the energy and character to do it again.

"There's been a lot of far more knowledgeable people than I who have supported the role.

"I just thought we needed a shot in the arm.

"He's done it before and I've got every confidence he can do it again."

The ARU has scheduled their interviews of the candidates for next Friday and are expected to announce Connolly's successor by the end of the month.

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