Wallabies coach Eddie Jones not ready to ‘wash the dog’ just yet

LYON – Wallabies coach Eddie Jones is not ready to settle for a nine-to-five job just yet and still gets a rush from coaching at the Rugby World Cup, two decades after taking his first team to the showpiece tournament.

The Australian’s fifth World Cup campaign is hanging by a thread and although the 63-year-old accepted that a loss to Wales on Sunday and a pool-stage exit might cost him his job, he was still excited to be doing it.

“When you coach, you make a choice to put yourself in these positions. If I didn’t want to put myself in these positions, I could be teaching,” the former headmaster said on Friday.

“I could have a nice life and get up every morning, the wife puts the packed lunch in the bag... I put a shirt and tie on, know I’m going to teach six periods, come home, wash the dog, clean the car, watch the news...

“I could have done that, mate. But I made a choice to coach. I love winning... I don’t know if it’s a drug but that’s the rush from coaching, mate.”

Jones took the Wallabies to the final of the 2003 event in his first stint as coach, was an adviser to the Springboks team who won the title in 2007, and led Japan to a huge upset of the South Africans in 2015.

At the last tournament in Japan four years ago, his England team beat the mighty All Blacks in the semi-finals before losing the final to the Springboks.

His young Australia team’s faltering start in France – they are third in Pool C with a win and a loss – means he is under immense pressure, but he said he was relishing even that.

“That makes it even more exciting,” said Jones, whose record in his second stint as Australia coach stands at one win (against Georgia in Paris) from seven Tests.

“At the end of the World Cup, given the results we’ve had, then maybe Australian Rugby doesn’t want to keep me. That’s the reality of the job I live in.

“But I just love rugby, mate. I love trying to get a young group of players together, trying to get them to be the best version of themselves. That’s the allure.”

For now, the focus is on Wales.

Jones has made three changes to his starting team, including dropping fly-half Carter Gordon and openside flanker Fraser McReight to the bench.

Tate McDermott returns at scrum-half after missing the 22-15 loss to Fiji with concussion and will link up with Ben Donaldson, who moves forward from fullback, in a new halves combination.

Andrew Kellaway, one of the more experienced backs, will make his World Cup debut at fullback.

Jones reacted to Australia losing the battle of the breakdown against Fiji by re-jigging his back row, moving Tom Hooper from blindside to openside and handing Rob Leota the No. 6 shirt.

Hooker Dave Porecki lines up in an unchanged front five and again replaces the injured Will Skelton as captain.

With bonus-point wins over Fiji and Portugal in their first two matches, Pool C leaders Wales could qualify for the quarter-finals with a victory over Australia.

Anything less than a win for them, however, and the pool could ultimately end up as a three-way tie at the top – including Fiji – with the two spots in the knockout rounds decided by tiebreaks.

“There’s definitely desperation for us,” Wales coach Warren Gatland said. “A loss or no points and it could come down to points difference. That’s the last position we want to be in. When you’ve worked so hard, why put yourself in that position?”

Gatland has reverted to the starting team who edged out Fiji 32-26 in their opener, recalling key backs Dan Biggar, Liam Williams, Nick Tompkins and George North after resting them for the laboured 28-8 win over Portugal. REUTERS