SIX NATIONS
Plenty to ponder for Eddie Jones ahead of tour to South Africa
The England coach has some serious thinking to do after the Grand Slam loss to Ireland
London — If it had been suggested to Eddie Jones at the start of the Six Nations that only two players would occupy the same position in all five games, the Australian, with 23 wins from 24 games at that point, might have raised a quizzical eyebrow. What his reaction would have been to the prospect of England’s title defence ending with them finishing fifth, on the back of their worst display since before any of the current squad were born, does not bear thinking about. But those are the realities for England, who played the gracious host to Ireland’s Grand Slam party on Saturday as they lost 24-15. It was their first home defeat under Jones and first at Twickenham in the Six Nations since 2012. Jones reacted to defeat by France in the previous round by making 10 changes, seven of them in personnel, to face Ireland. That meant that only prop Mako Vunipola and lock Maro Itoje started all five games in the same position. Owen Farrell and Chris Robshaw were also in the five starting si...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.