After retirement Gordon turned his attention to coaching. He had a brief spell with Mangere East before he was convinced to become Central's head coach in the Bay of Plenty Rugby League competition.[6] Gordan was met with immediate success, taking control of the Bay of Plenty and Northern Districts sides. In 1987 he became coach of the New Zealand national rugby league team. The Kiwis toured Australia and Papua New Guinea in 1987 and Gordon was involved in an upset win of Australia.[7] The team couldn't repeat the feat in 1988 as they lost the final of the World Cup in front of 47,000 fans at Eden Park.[8] The Kiwis toured Britain and France in 1989 before Gordon was replaced as Kiwis coach.
Halfway through the 1995 Lion Red Cup Neil Joyce resigned as the coach of the Bay of Plenty Stags. Gordon became a co-coach alongside Lawrence Brydon for the remainder of the season. In 1996 he remained with the Stags as the business Manager while Brydon became the head coach. During the season he was suspended and investigated by the New Zealand Rugby League over accusations of fraud.[12] He was later cleared of all charges.[13]