England’s sobering display leaves coach with boos ringing in his ears after Irish claim grand slam in style on St Patrick’s DayIt was suffering weather. The kind of cold that makes you pull down your hat and stamp the ground, shuffle your feet and clench your teeth – fitting conditions, then, for an England team struggling through three defeats in a row.This latest, the first at home since Eddie Jones took over, stung like Saturday’s wind. It has been a long winter for England and there is not a hint of spring yet. There were certainly no green shoots to be seen at Twickenham, just green shirts – in front, on top, either side, and all around – Irishmen every...
England head coach may have compromised his Lions future with his ill-judged, unfunny remarks about Ireland and WalesIt is just under two months since Eddie Jones signed a two-year contract extension as the England head coach until 2021. His team had won 23 from 24 Tests and everything in the Twickenham garden was spectacularly rosy. “I’m enjoying it,” he said, reflecting on his first two years at the helm. “But as we know in sport things can change very quickly.”Just how swiftly has been underlined at England’s team hotel this week. Successive defeats by Scotland and France and Jones’s unfunny attempted “jokes” about Ireland and Wales have transformed the mood. Related: Eddie Jones’ extended deal shows the RFU grasping succession planning...
A loss of key players and refereeing interpretations in the Premiership have weakened Eddie Jones’s hand in the area where international rugby is won and lostOne statistic highlights why Ireland have taken over from England as the Six Nations champions and explains why Eddie Jones invited the South African referee Marius van der Westhuizen to training this week before the match against their successors on Saturday.No team have created more rucks in this year’s Six Nations than Ireland but no side has conceded fewer penalties at the breakdown. By contrast, England have given away more than anyone and account for nearly one quarter of the total penalties awarded in the tackle area this year compared to 16 % in 2017....
England need to learn how to adapt after two defeats that have raised interest in the Six Nations, and further admiration of Ireland, in All Black countryMaybe the Eddie Jones factor plays a part – the old mate from across the Tasman Sea – but whenever England lose it creates a ripple in New Zealand. I’ve been back there for the past 10 days and there is no doubt the country’s media has jumped on it. The Six Nations is not exactly headline news over there but what strikes New Zealanders most is just how competitive it is. With Scotland a lot stronger now, Wales playing a new brand of rugby, Ireland very comfortable in what they are doing and...
The new Six Nations champions go to Twickenham for a possible grand slam but Ireland’s autumn game with All Blacks now catches the eyeThe most satisfying week in Irish sporting history? If their horses can cope with the soft ground at Cheltenham and their rugby players canter to a triumphant grand slam at Twickenham on Saturday the next few days will definitely be up there. Just imagine the wild delight on St Patrick’s Day should England trail in a distant second behind Rory Best’s thoroughbred Six Nations champions.The latest official World Rugby rankings are already worth toasting. As a consequence of their team’s four successive championship victories to date and England’s recent nosedive, the rankings now read as follows: 1) New Zealand,...