Ireland defeat reminiscent of end of my England era – Jones

Former head coach Eddie Jones says the scenes at the end of England’s defeat against Ireland on Saturday reminded him of the acrimonious end of his own time in charge at Twickenham.

England came into the Six Nations with hopes of winning a first title since 2020, but their campaign has been sunk by emphatic back-to-back defeats after they were overturned by Scotland in round two.

Some home fans left Allianz Stadium early in the Ireland match, while fly-half George Ford was ironically cheered for finding touch after two earlier botched efforts.

“I felt a bit sick at the end of the game,” Jones told his Rugby Unity podcast.

“I’ve had that feeling – the grey sky looks like it is coming down on you, there is this eerie feeling in the stadium, it’s only half full, and the ones that are there are looking for a bit of blood.”

Jones’ own tenure ended with a 27-13 loss to South Africa in November 2022, which concluded to a chorus of jeers.

Jones believes that Steve Borthwick, who worked as his assistant during stints with England and Japan, made an error before the tournament starting in publicly stating his team’s aim to travel to Paris on the final weekend with the title in their sights.

The game had loomed as a meeting of the two pre-tournament favourites, but, while France have collected a maximum 15 points from their three opening fixtures, England could sink to the bottom of the standings if they lose to an impressive Italy in Rome in their next and penultimate match on 7 March.

“I thought Steve made some very uncharacteristic comments about a title decider against France,” Japan head coach Jones added.

“Steve is the most pragmatic, intelligent coach you could meet, but to look ahead for any team is fraught with danger. We all know that.

“The players read everything, right? Wives read everything, girlfriends read everything, boyfriends read everything.

“They all read it, right? And they hear that and they talk to them and they say, ‘we’ve got to get our tickets for France, where are we staying, where are we going the night before for dinner?’

Jones said that the sharp dip in England’s performances after a run of 12 successive wins was down to “emotional control”.

“That comes down to the preparation for the game, the leadership on the field or one or two players not particularly buying into the team,” he added.

“It could be any one of those factors.”

The 66-year-old believes the solution lies with England’s on and off-field leaders bringing the team together, but also urged Borthwick to reconsider his decision to deploy Henry Pollock from the start.

The Northampton back row was included in the starting XV for the first time after seven enterprising cameos as a replacement.

While Pollock delivered some eye-catching moments, beating five defenders, winning a breakdown turnover, making the sixth-highest number of metres for the hosts and the most tackles of any England back row, Jones believes he makes more impact in short bursts off the bench.

“Pollock to me is like, if you go back, [former South Africa back row] Bobby Skinstad – good-looking, always got a suntan and he can play,” said Jones.

“He’s one of those blokes who is 20 minutes, who finds himself in the right position, but he’s not a ‘grind’ player.