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England head coach Eddie Jones is reportedly set to be sacked by the RFU following an Autumn Nations Series review.
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An inquest into England’s dismal showing this November has taken place over the course of the last seven days, but it appears that Jones’ fate was effectively sealed over the weekend.
Writing in respected Australian newspaper, the Sydney Morning Herald, Georgina Robinson reports that the 62-year-old will be fired by the RFU.
If true, Leicester head coach Steve Borthwick is the hot favourite to take over the reins, although RugbyPass understands he first needs to be bought out of his contract with the Tigers. The RFU may be forced to wait until they have Borthwick’s signature before announcing Jones’ departure.
Jones’ case to continue in a post he held since the end of 2015 was not helped when his independent media advisor David Pembroke described RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney as “slippery” amid an accusation that he had leaked stories to the media about the departure of backroom staff.
Pembroke added that Sweeney is a “goner” and has since apologised for the remarks made on Wednesday in the comments section of a newspaper website.
Sweeney has been leading the review process and it is understood that he retains the full support of the board, who make the final decision on whether or not to sack Jones.
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Jones’ win ratio is 74 per cent in charge of England, which is still the highest winning percentage of any England head coach in history.
The news comes as Wales head coach Wayne Pivac faced a similar fate in Wales. The former Scarlets head coach has been replaced by Warren Gatland.
The Welsh Rugby Union confirmed Pivac’s departure following their review of Wales’ Autumn Nations Series campaign that included a home defeat against Georgia.
Wales won just 13 of 34 Tests under Pivac’s direction after succeeding his fellow New Zealander Gatland following the 2019 World Cup.
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And Gatland now makes an extraordinary return to the post he held between 2008 and 2019, during which time Wales won four Six Nations titles, including three Grand Slams, reached two World Cup semi-finals and briefly headed the world rankings.
additional reporting PA and AAP
To sack Jones now, not even a year out from the World Cup, is a foolish move. We saw in the last WC that Jones was purposely holding back tactics and bringing the team to a new level for the WC (lest we forget, 2018 was far from a vintage England year), and I'm certain he's doing the same again. What I do dislike however, and surely what is driving the Eddie out crowd, is his flippancy about any game outside the WC as unimportant to win, only a testing ground. It takes away a lot from the game, and can come off as an excuse for poor results. Jones is a good coach, and the best move is to let things play out as planned, he will spring surprises and traps at the WC, and his system has been at work for years, to the point where no one will be able to reshape this team into a better one with what little time is left. If, however, Jones' England are turfed out of the WC, then he should be gone right away, and the next coach given more time to reset the team.
This is from a neutral POV, I am neither from England or from a major rugby nation.
Hi All. What everyone seems to forget is that EJ will be a great asset to England's rivals. His knowledge of the English setup and players, can be used against them. Rassie for one might be the first to rope him in. For this reason, i believe his job is safe for now
If he is sacked he’ll receive a contract termination payoff of 800 000£ with a clause that he can’t work for international team until after the RWC.
There is certainly an Eddie master plan for the RWC, and it is quite likely to be a creative one. I expect that he has been working backwards to ensure that the team peaks at the tournament, and I further expect that he has been keeping some surprises to himself. What it is not clear is that the RFU presumably have some insight into the plan, which the rest of us don't, and that they would therefore be a little more tolerant of the current results. A coach with the highest win rate of any English national coach, with a great run in the last RWC, and with a record of thinking outside of the box and outwitting other coaches in big games, is a big asset. That he is one of the most experienced coaches out there, coaching at international level for 25 years, with coaching roles in three RWC finals (1999, 2007, 2019), is an irreplaceable strength. And the fact that he has a gigantic (and understandable) personal ambition to finally win the big prize, as head coach, in what may be his last real chance to do so, is a major benefit to the team. If it is true that they will ask him to move on then my assumption is that it is not a rugby decision, but an effort at self-preservation by the folks in the RFU. It is a high risk for their own careers to back Eddie at this point. The RWC expectations of a replacement coach would be much lower, and a less than stellar RWC campaign would not be too harmful to careers of RFC suits. Public pressure on Eddie seems to be leading to a lower reward outcome. FWIW I still think that an Eddie coached England would be a primary contender at the RWC. A last minute coaching change is unlikely to improve that, as there is not enough time to install new structures, culture, or player experience before the tournament, and whatever tricks are up Eddie's sleeve will remain up his sleeve.
I'd love to be a fast talking used car salesman with you in my lot!
What actual evidence is there of a master plan? His own fast talking after yet another poor performance? Past World Cups? He's not won one in the past as head coach. He deserves credit for being very good at preparing for one particular team, but you normally need to beat at least two good teams to win a world cup. In 2019 for example he only beat one team with more than a 50% winning record and got thrashed by the second. That with a world class pack and world class assistants, neither of which he has now.
As for his win loss record, much of that was based on playing lots of experienced players in the year or two after the world cup, when everyone one else was rebuilding. Take that out and it's pretty average.
As for nobody else being able to do any better, have you seen how dire the performances have been these two years? How many players have gone backwards since 2019? How few new players have been successfully integrated into the team since then? How can anyone possibly do worse?
Guess he ain’t building to the WC…
This is ridiculous. Legitimately the best coach we've ever had
True Finn, I was hoping he was going to stay, in fact give him another four years I was thinking as we like winning the Calcutta Cup. Mind you it was the only game we won on occasions, but you know the old saying about beggars.