Coach’s constant tinkering has left England living on the promise of a bright future rather than winning the next gameRemember that night in Paris? This same March week back in 2016, Eddie Jones’s England went there with the grand slam on the line. Of course they won it, beating France 31-21 thanks to fine tries from Danny Care, Dan Cole and Anthony Watson. Afterwards, James Haskell and Chris Robshaw were walking around the Stade de France in custom-made shirts with the number six-and-a-half on the back (a sly and affectionate dig at their coach after he told them they couldn’t play seven), while the Vunipola brothers belted out Backstreet Boys covers in the dressing room. It was the start of...
Eddie Jones’s side deserve credit for battling with 14 men, but they are still chasing the elusive promise of their own potentialIn England’s national sporting psyche there is a special place reserved for the gallant loser. At times it can feel a little schmaltzy, a touch indulgent. To be beaten but unbowed is a romantic notion though one that can also suggest a certain nobility when the cold, hard facts point to a definitive defeat.Leaving a frazzled Twickenham late on Saturday night you could not help but wonder whether the heroic nature of such a defeat was overblown or if the plaudits heading England’s way were justified after resisting Ireland for so long with 14 men, before two late tries...
Eddie Jones’s side managed to hold on for the win against Wales without the powerful centre but whether they can continue to do so in the Six Nations and beyond is uncertainNot for the first time this Six Nations, Eddie Jones was left lamenting a lack of ruthlessness from his side following a nail-biting victory against Wales. It is a word he has used often of late – clinical being another – but so far England have not been able to display enough of a cutting edge in attack to suggest they will finish top of the pile. They remain in the hunt for the title after keeping Wales’s second‑half fightback at bay but it seems clear that improvements must...
Eddie Jones’s side are a perpetual work in progress but remain in title contention with two games left – at least on paperIt used to be painting the Forth Bridge which was considered the ultimate in never-ending jobs. These days it is the England rugby team, a work in progress for so long that people have almost forgotten what the original timescale was meant to be. There are some weekends, and this was another of them, when it also feels as if Tracey Emin’s unmade bed might be the secret artistic inspiration for Eddie Jones’s still-ongoing project.Nothing is ever finished with Jones, regardless of the evidence available. “It’s got no ceiling,” he insisted on Saturday night on the subject of...
England lack the hulking power of old, but their head coach has made bold choices for the Six Nations opener against ScotlandAll coaches insist they never read the newspapers until the day comes when they wish to send a specific message. Thus it is that Eddie Jones spent a large chunk of his pre-Six Nations address insisting Scotland are the nailed-on favourites who will have to cope with the pressure of their lofty status. Say it often enough and maybe a few seeds of doubt can be quietly sown.The flip side, of course, is what that implies about his own team and a tournament buildup which has been on the grisly side of horrible. No Owen Farrell, Courtney Lawes or...