Aside from the first pictures of Donald Trump inside the White House there was no disputing the week’s most terrifying image. Those cold-hearted racer snakes lying in wait for young marine iguanas on Sir David Attenborough’s wonderful new BBC natural history series also happened to be an ideal allegory for the treacherous landscape of professional sport. To elude crushing disappointment requires determination and, above all, resourcefulness when it matters.
In many ways that is Eddie Jones’s key attribute; it takes more than a pack of biro-wielding snakes to deter the wily, fast-talking lizard of Oz. Only last year the England squad was swallowed up and spat out of its own World Cup; since Jones took over they have not lost in nine games and shed their old skin of tactical uncertainty. Should South Africa win at Twickenham on Saturday, extending their 12-game unbeaten run in this fixture, it will be a surprise to anyone who has been in and around the England camp in Bagshot this week.
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