![]() ![]() You could see how much England have improved in that respect in the Six Nations, with the Wales game the best example of the increased mobility of their back five in the pack. Sir Ian McGeechan wrote in the Telegraph:Īt the RWC none of the northern hemisphere sides could live with New Zealand and Australia there.īut I sense a shift. We also saw his hand at work at the breakdown. It was from this platform they laid the foundations for each victory. Jones did not make sweeping changes to his starting team from the lineup deployed by Stuart Lancaster, but in one or two areas, he added players who would increase England’s power.ĭylan Hartley’s return helped reinstate the scrummaging power England lacked in the World Cup, and his throwing to a refreshed set of lineout jumpers ensured England had a lineout set piece better than any other in the tournament. So let's dissect it a little further and see how he has fared in the various facets that comprise the England job. It has been an astonishingly successful first few months in charge for the 56-year-old. The former Wallabies coach set about watching the players he would soon take under his tutelage, and when he finally got them together to prepare for the Six Nations, he quickly turned them from laughing stock of their own World Cup to Six Nations Grand Slam champions. The agreement was done quickly, and Jones was whisked from Table Mountain to Twickenham, London, with dizzying speed. Seven days after those quotes came out, Jones was England's new man, per the BBC. And it wasn't enough for Jones to honour his deal down south. I woke up this morning and looked at Table Mountain … I’m very happy to be here."īut that wasn't enough to deter the Red Rose headhunters. He had already signed a deal to coach the Stormers Super Rugby franchise in South Africa and had made his introductory press conference in Cape Town, stating clearly he was not about to welch on that deal, per the Guardian: "There has been no contact and I am committed to the Stormers. To misquote Renee Zellweger, the Rugby Football Union seemed to have had their man at "Hello."Īs soon as Stuart Lancaster made for the Twickenham exit, the man who had guided Japan to their historic win over South Africa was among the names mentioned to be near the top of the English rugby governing body's shopping list. If that's true, Eddie Jones has introduced himself as the new messiah of English rugby in the best possible way. They say first impressions count for a lot.
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