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'Brutal' Chris Ashton reason for ending England career under Jones

(Photo by David Rogers/The RFU Collection via Getty Imagesges)

A former England international has revealed that Chris Ashton didn’t want to play for the national team under Eddie Jones after taking a dislike to the Australian’s methods during the 2018 November internationals. The current all-time Gallagher Premiership record try-scorer had quit playing in France for Toulon due to a desire to restart a Test career that had ended with a June 2014 cap away to New Zealand.

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That 39th appearance with England appeared to be the last for Ashton, who went on to leave Saracens for Toulon three years later in 2017. However, such was his potency during his single season in the Top 14 – he finished with 24 tries in the 23 league outings – that he was tempted to return to the Premiership with the incentive of getting another shot with the national team.

Having joined Sale, Ashton was selected for the November series four years ago and after stepping off the England bench versus the Springboks, he was a try-scoring starter versus the All Blacks a week later but that display marked the high point of his fleeting return.

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Ashton won just three more caps, starting against Japan and France either side of coming off the February 2019 Six Nations bench away to Ireland, and that was that for the winger who went on to play for Harlequins and Worcester in the top flight before hooking up with Leicester earlier this year to aid their successful run to title glory.

The story about Ashton and the sombre ending to his England career emerged on this week’s Rugby Pod show when co-host Andy Goode was asked if he thought head coach Jones has lost the dressing room after last weekend’s loss to South Africa left them with just five wins in a dozen games during 2022.

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“What he [Jones] does is rule on fear,” Goode began. “There are a lot of players in the squad that are fearful of making mistakes and it comes out in how they play. Has he lost the dressing room? Players aren’t going to come out and say that openly. He has got (Owen) Farrell as his sort of right-hand man. Farrell obviously is a very, very strong character in terms of how he dictates things in that squad, which is a very positive thing at times. But it’s like every coach, no one is going to come out and say anything bad about the coach until the coach is gone.

“Chris Ashton, I spoke to him recently about it. He said he came back and was desperate to play for England. He left Toulon to come back to Sale because he wanted to play for England again and that first autumn internationals he got picked, played against the All Blacks and then he was in camp with Eddie Jones and he said he absolutely hated it.

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“He said it was brutal, it was like ridiculous on him, the body, his family and everything and he said he wasn’t enjoying it so he didn’t want to play for England again. If that doesn’t speak volumes. Everyone should be going down to England camp as hungry as you can be to want to pull on an England jersey and perform and try and take England to as high a place as you can.

“Next year there is a Six Nations and a World Cup. I don’t reckon they have got that (hunger). Of course, they want to win but have they got that desire to go all the way for Eddie Jones? I don’t know, it doesn’t look like it in the performances at the minute.”

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Bull Shark 23 minutes ago
David Campese names his Springbok world player of the year winner

Why is Joe Schmidt the best option for Australia? (LONG READ)


An essay for @OJohn with love from South Africa.


OJohn keeps banging on about kiwis and Saffers and everyone else seeking to undermine and bring down Australian rugby… Blah, Blah, Blah. It’s boring and not worth responding too 99 days out of 100.


He misses the point completely that Australians either are or are not the masters of their own destiny. So to blame anyone else but themselves for what the state of Australian rugby is in - is hypocritical.


But recently, Australia has shown signs of life. Personally, I always believed they would be back at some point. At the beginning of this year I predicted that the wallabies would bounce back this year. I predicted that they would overtake England in the world rankings. I am predicting that they could finish second in the RC, could win the Lions series and could make it to a RWC final at home.


I tend to get ahead of myself when I’m excited... Ask my wife. But forgive me for getting excited about the Wallabies looking good! Is it so bad?


Like OJohn, I believe that Australia’s lands abound with natures gifts, including athletic specimens across any sporting code the Aussies compete in. It’s one of the reasons most of us don’t like Aussies. They win sh1t. Regularly. And look smug when they do...


But back to OJohn. And his banging on about the need for Australia to have an Australian coach. Here are a few highlights of his argument:


Several times I've given a list of half a dozen Australian coaches who would be more Australian than Schmidt and just as successful.

Tell me which Australian coaches would be acceptable to coach the All Blacks ......?

Because South Africans and Kiwis and Welshmen and Scotsman are all s.... scared that if an immensely talented and athletic team like Australia is ever able to harness nationalistic Australian passion with an Australian coach, you'll all be s.c.r.e.w.e.d.


And then finally – the list of 6:


Ewen McKenzie, Less Kiss, Stephen Larkham, Jim McKay, David Nucifora, Scott Wisenthal, Ben Mowen, Rod Kafer, Mick Byrne, John Manetti, Jason Gilmore, Dan McKellar.

Plus, a special request:


Keep in mind Rod MacQueen never won a Super Rugby title before he was appointed Wallaby coach but he ended up the greatest rugby coach the world has ever seen. Better than Erasmus even. Who is probably the next best.

Right. I don’t care about the tinfoil hat theories. I want to assess OJohn’s list and determine whether any of them fit the mold of a Rod Macqueen.

 

Like Rod Macqueen the following world cup winning coaches never won a Super Rugby Title:


·       David Kirk, 1987 (17 appearances for New Zealand)

·       Kitch Kristie, 1995

·       Rod Macqueen, 1999

·       Clive Woodward, 2003 (21 Appearance for England)

·       Jake White, 2007 (School Teacher)

·       Graham Henry, 2011 (School Teacher)

·       Steve Hansen, 2015 (Policeman)

·       Rassie Erasmus, 2019 (36 Appearances for South Africa)

·       Jacques Nienaber, 2023 (Physiotherapist).


I couldn't find out what Rod or Kitch did other than coach.


The only coach who has won a Super title and a World Cup?

·       Bob Dwyer, 1991 (A Tahs man wouldn’t you know!)


In fact coaches that have won super rugby titles have not won world cups. Robbie Deans. Heyneke Meyer to name just two.


I know I’m being childish, but I needed to bring this list in somehow because it’s quite obvious that whatever these coaches did before they became international level coaches is largely immaterial. Or is it?


Interestingly Ewan McKenzie (A Tah Man!) has won a Super title. And despite being a Tah Man made it into OJohn’s list. That’s two strikes for Ewan Mckenzie based on OJohn’s criteria so far. Not to mention his 50% win rate as head coach of the Wallabies between 2013 and 2014 (and the laundry list of off the field fcuk ups that swirled around the team at the time).


So Ewan is out.


I find it interesting that, as we speak, eight out of the ten top ranked men’s teams are coached by former international players:

1.      South Africa, Rassie Erasmus (36 appearances for South Africa)

2.      Ireland, Andy Farrell (8 appearances for England)

3.      New Zealand, Scott Robertson (23 appearances for New Zealan)

4.      France, Fabien Galthie (64 appearances for France)

5.      Argentina, Felipe Contemponi (87 appearances for Argentina)

6.      Scotland, Gregor Townsend (82 appearances for Scotland)

7.      England, Steve Borthwick (57 appearances for England)

8.      Australia, Joe Schmidt (School Teacher)

9.      Fiji, Michael Byrne (Aussie Rules Player)

10.  Italy, Gonzalo Quesada (38 appearances for Argentina).


It would appear as though we have entered an era where successful international coaches, largely, have played rugby at international level in the professional era. Or are ex school teachers. Much like Jake White and Graham Henry! Or a policeman.

 

Back to OJohn’s List. That leaves us with:


·       Less Kiss, (I like the look of)

·       Stephen Larkham, (I like the look of)

·       Jim McKay, (Very little to write home about)

·       David Nucifora, (Too old)

·       Scott Wisenthal, (I literally can’t find anything on him on the Google).

·       Ben Mowen, (Too young, no coaching experience)

·       Rod Kafer, (No coaching experience)

·       Mick Byrne, (He’s coaching the Fijians, Aussie rules!)

·       John Manetti, (Can’t find him on the google)

·       Jason Gilmore, (Seems to be working through the ranks, coaching Wallabies A)

·       Dan McKellar, (Not much to write home about, but could be an option).


Applying some logic, I would say the following are viable options based on age, experience in coaching AND the fact that they have played rugby for Australia in the professional era:

·       Less Kiss, (I like the look of)

·       Stephen Larkham, (I like the look of)

·       Jason Gilmore, (Seems to be working through the ranks, coaching Wallabies A)


After having done all this research, I think it’s fair to say that none of these three have the same pedigree as Joe Schmidt, the teacher. Who took a sh1tty Ireland team to no.1. Won a few 6 Nations and helped get the All Blacks to a world cup final in 2023.


Joe’s the best option for now. But if Kiss, Larkham and Gilmore are the business for the future for Australia get them in now as assistants to Joe and stop moaning!!


Errors and Ommissions accepted. Mispelling of names is OJohn's fault.

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