Rugby: England captain Farrell says sacking of coach Jones 'unbelievably disappointing'
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England captain Owen Farrell (left) said Former England coach Eddie Jones was one of the best coaches he has ever worked with.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LONDON – England captain Owen Farrell said Eddie Jones was one of the best coaches he has worked with and described the Australian’s sacking as “unbelievably disappointing”.
Jones was dismissed by the Rugby Football Union
“It’s unbelievably disappointing,” Farrell told the BBC on Sunday after his Premiership side Saracens defeated Edinburgh in the Champions Cup.
“Eddie had been a big part of England Rugby for a long time now and he has been one of the best coaches I have ever had so, for that, I’m massively thankful.
“We are disappointed it has finished early and we owe a lot to him. I have been around for a while now and not been around too many changes, both at club and international level. It’s not pleasant to go through.”
Farrell said the impetus to replace Jones had not come from the players. “I don’t think it has come from the players. There is obviously stuff we all want to get better at from the results but as players, you look at yourself and see what you can do,” he added.
Jones made an immediate positive impact with England, leading them to a 2016 Grand Slam, with further Six Nations titles in 2017 and 2020.
He also took England to the 2019 World Cup final in Japan, defeating both Australia and New Zealand in the knockout stages, only to be well beaten 32-12 by the Springboks in the showpiece match.
But his critics allege the 62-year-old is a superb “turnaround” coach, whose effectiveness is diluted the longer he remains in the post.
Even he accepted he should have stood down as Australia coach after the Wallabies’ 2003 World Cup final loss, but stayed too long only to be dismissed in 2005.
But with just nine months to go till the 2023 World Cup, Jones may not remain unemployed for long, with reports from his native Australia saying Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan had been in touch.
Calls have been mounting in Australia to bring Jones home, with Wallabies coach Dave Rennie under increasing pressure after a year of only five wins from 14 matches.
McLennan told the Sydney Morning Herald that he had spoken to Jones but that “it’s all pretty high level and it’s about really getting a sense of where his head is at given the drama of last week”.
According to the newspaper, no formal offers were discussed and McLennan declined to comment on whether he favoured a role for Jones in 2023, or in 2024 after the World Cup.
Jones has been flagged as a potential replacement to steer the Wallabies through a British and Irish Lions tour in 2025 and a home World Cup two years later.
“You’d be crazy not to think how we could use that brain of his but I know Eddie has a lot of offers out there,” McLennan said.
Jones told the newspaper “nothing is off the table”.
“As for my next step, well I think everyone knows I love a scrap and I’m up for whatever challenge is next,” he said.
“I’m open to looking at everything in rugby and I’ve made no secret of my wish to give the NRL (National Rugby League) a go, too. Nothing is off the table. Nothing.” REUTERS, AFP
