McGarry (49) is one of 10 candidates for four spots available on the executive committee of New Zealand Football.
Otago Boys' High School deputy rector Dougal McGowan is also seeking a spot on the executive committee.
The committee is part of a new structure of the New Zealand Football administration and will have a similar role as the old board.
Three of the spots on the committee have been taken already, by Paul Cochrane, Mark Aspden and Bill Moran.
McGarry said he was keen to put his name in the hat and move into administration and the governance of the game.
He had a phone interview on Monday about the appointment, and will fly to Auckland later this month for an interview by the presidents of the seven federations throughout the country.
He said the game was in good heart in New Zealand and he had always looked on football in a positive way.
''It is a very popular sport with children and we have good numbers playing the game. Internationally, we do well considering what we are up against.
''On the executive, I think we need a decent mix of people. That is the key thing for me - to get a right mix of people.
"If we get a whole lot of business people on the board, then I think that is too narrow.''
The sport would always have funding issues, which were not helped by the geography of New Zealand.
A lot of money was spent on air fares to get teams to competitions.
McGarry, the head of physical education at Otago Boys' High School, had coached many different teams over the years and said if he was elected on to the committee, that would not necessarily be the end of his coaching career.
He had cut back on coaching this year, just coaching the Otago Boys' First XI, and had really enjoyed it.
McGowan (45) has been on the NZF board since 2010 and said he had enjoyed the role and wanted to continue.
He had been backed by Football South and wanted to give the southern region a voice at a national level.
Issues facing the game included the sustainability of competitions at a national level and making sure the foundations of the whole of football plan.
He wanted to take the politics out of the sport and focus on the game.
Over the next couple of weeks, the football federations will decide whether three other organisations - the Professional Footballers Association, the national league licensee group (representing the national league sides) and the Wellington Phoenix - will become full voting members of NZF.
Three other candidates will be elected to the executive committee next year, with the committee to be capped at 10 people.
