The XV de la Rose coach is under fire from critics in England. The vice-world champions could finish fifth in the Tournament for the second consecutive year.
Usually, he likes to say that his opponents are favorites, just to reverse the pressure. Classic. There, for the Crunch this Saturday evening, Eddie Jones did the opposite, clearly announcing that the XV of the Rose knows full well how to beat the Blues. “We will have a good victory against France. We’ve beaten them in our last two games, so we have a pretty good idea of how to play against them.“said the Australian technician. England has indeed signed two successes, each time at Twickenham, against France in the final of the short-lived Autumn Nations Cup (22-19 ap) at the end of 2020, then during the 2021 Tournament (23-20) .
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An outing that did not fail to make Fabien Galthié react: “Indeed we hear, we are very attentive to what is said around us. We don’t batten down the hatches. We are in a context and we take care to understand what is happening around us. We listen and in particular our adversaries because we study our adversaries. We hear what they say about them and about us. Obviously, this contributes to our preparatory work, of course.“A projection that surely stung Antoine Dupont and his teammates.
Maybe not the best idea Eddie Jones had. The Aussie knows he’s under pressure. Reigning world vice-champion in 2019 (defeat in the final against South Africa), England has been struggling in the Tournament for two years. Last year, Her Majesty’s subjects only finished fifth in the Tournament and, in the event of a setback on Saturday in Saint-Denis, they would still be stuck in the same place, just ahead of Italy. Unworthy of their status.
Successful November tour
Already, last year, the powerful English Federation had launched an investigation, calling on several experts, to make an inventory. In the hot seat, Eddie Jones had finally passed between the drops. And the November tour of XV de la Rose had dispelled the dark clouds thanks to successes over Tonga (69-3) but above all Australia (32-15) and South Africa (27-26), for a rematch of the Japanese World Cup final.
Deprived for this Tournament of his master to play Owen Farrell, Eddie Jones did not hesitate to launch the promising Marcus Smith, only 22 years old but already impressive of maturity. A winning choice and great promises for the future. Except that the results do not follow: by falling from the start in Scotland (20-17), the English lost for the third time in a row at the opening of the Tournament. It stains. And despite a good resistance to fourteen the whole match against Ireland (expulsion of Ewels from the 1st minute), they logically folded at home against Ireland (15-32). Two fall…
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So, inevitably, the critics are raining across the Channel. Starring Sir Clive Woodward, coach of the 2003 world champions, who spends most of his time lighting up Eddie Jones in his tabloid columns Daily Mail. First good scud after the defeat in Edinburgh: “There is no one at Twickenham qualified to hold Eddie Jones to account from a rugby perspective. He has them (the leaders) clearly all in his pocket. He cannot be questioned, which is a huge weakness of the federation.
“If it goes badly – and I think there’s about a 10% chance of it going well and a 90% chance of it going badly – Jones will be very exposed.”
Clive Woodward
Other harsh criticism after the announcement of his squad composition to challenge the Blues. In the three-quarters, in the absence in particular of Jonny May and Anthony Watson injured, two players with few selections will start: George Furbank (5) at the back and Freddie Steward (9) on a wing. “Saturday night, we will either praise the genius of Eddie Jones or his future could be seriously discussed again. It’s really strange, to put it politely», Tackles Woodward. And to assert:If it goes badly – and I think there’s about a 10% chance of it going well and a 90% chance of it going badly – Jones will be very exposed after a Tournament in which he has no stopped changing his three-quarter line and being confusing with some of his decisions.»
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England clearly intends to bombard the Blues with high balloons on Saturday at the Stade de France. Thinking of having observed a fault in this sector with Gabin Villière and Melvyn Jaminet against Wales. A tactic that may have paid off in the past, when the Rose had become queen of the game of dispossession. Except that things have changed and Fabien Galthié’s players have expanded their tactical palette. “I understand the logic, but playing rugby is choosing a team to impose its style of play, and not building a team to counter a perceived weakness in the opponent. And moreover, in my opinion, it is not a weakness at all»cingle Clive Woodward.
“Unless England win in France or they can change significantly, why should Eddie Jones keep his job as manager? »
Austin Healey
Another important element of the duel on Saturday evening: the English targeted Antoine Dupont as one of the main opposing dangers. Thus, scrum half Ben Youngs (115 caps, English record) explained to the Telegraph that he underwent special training to be able to compete, in terms of intensity, with the best player in the world. “The game has become so choppy that you need to be able to play in short, crisp bursts, details the 32-year-old number 9. And, when you go there, you have to bring real momentum, energy, move the ball in the right tempo, because afterwards you know you’re going to get more recovery time.“England (admittedly deprived of several executives) is therefore trying to evolve, but for the moment it is not bearing fruit.
“Arrogance is only a problem when you lose”
For Austin Healey, former versatile three-quarter with 57 selections with the Rose, that’s enough. It does not beat around the bush: if England lose in Paris, Eddie Jones must jump. “It was not easy to come to this conclusion but, unless England win in France or they can change significantly, why should Eddie Jones keep his job as manager?” According to the former Leicester Tigers player, “One of the main problems is that Jones always comes up with good excuses. There is always a complaint, a subject to discuss, a change in his staff. The turnover in his staff has been very high and I don’t think there has always been a great quality in this area, compared to the staff of France or Ireland.
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When things smiled on him and his team was doing well, Eddie Jones had dropped: “Arrogance is only a problem when you lose. If you win, it’s called self-confidence.” A statement that comes back to him today like a boomerang. Too bad for an Australian.