MY ACCOUNT
Eddie Jones should be sacked as England head coach if his side fail to beat Scotland in next year’s Six Nations opener, says former boss Clive Woodward.
The Australian oversaw a 27-13 defeat to world champions to South Africa on Saturday, another chastening result for his side ahead of next year’s Rugby World Cup following a loss to Argentina at Twickenham.
With just one win in November against Japan, England were well beaten by a Springboks team missing key European-based players,
Woodward, who masterminded the Red Rose’s 2003 Rugby World Cup, believes Jones’ position should be under threat ahead of the latest Rugby Football Union (RFU) review.
“England are not just losing, they are going backwards at an alarming rate of knots,” he wrote in his Daily Mail column.
“A full and totally transparent review must be done immediately to look into where the team are at. As head coach, Eddie Jones has serious questions to answer. Everything must be scrutinised.”
Woodward has pointed to the RFU’s culpability too, in reference to a review panel that has assessed his tenure periodically.
The 66-year-old feels he should have been asked to investigate the incumbent head coach, while shooting down suggestions he wants a role within the governing body.
“Since 2019, when Jones’ England failed to turn up in the World Cup final, this anonymous panel has conducted two utterly pointless reviews,” he added.
“For reasons which have never been explained to me, I have never been invited to participate in any of these reviews. At the risk of sounding arrogant, I believe I am the most qualified Englishman to conduct an investigation.
“People might read that and think I’m angling for a job. Nothing could be further from the truth. The role as RFU director of rugby would have interested me 10 years ago, but that ship has long since sailed.
“Jones needs to feel some serious heat from his employers. I would say to him: ‘Forget the next World Cup, if you lose your next game against Scotland in the Six Nations you’re out of your job.’
“If Jones has to get paid off [through his contract], then so be it. Stop talking about the World Cup. It epitomises the cosy culture of English rugby and is a sure-fire way to keep your job no matter how poorly you perform.
England will face Scotland at Twickenham on February 4 to kick off their Six Nations campaign ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
