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       #Post#: 62264--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: poorfour
       Date: March 24, 2021, 9:33 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       A lot of this debate hinges on something we don't know, and
       probably only the RFU and Eddie know: is their priority "win the
       6N in a year where our squad is disrupted by COVID and
       relegation" or is it "build a squad and a system to win the RWC
       in 2023"?
       If it's the former, then he will probably go.
       If it's the latter then a lot of what happened in the 6N is
       irrelevant, and there are some elements that looked positive.
       The reality is that it will be a balance of both - but the RFU's
       main short term concern is likely to begin and end at "will we
       still be able to sell all the tickets we are allowed to in the
       autumn?" as long as they are confident of that, and Eddie can
       make a case that he's learned something that builds towards 2023
       and hasn't totally ticked off his players, I think he's unlikely
       to be kicked out.
       #Post#: 62265--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: JammyGit
       Date: March 24, 2021, 9:35 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Surely if it was the latter, that was a total failure as well?
       Again, if we'd tried something different - be it a change to how
       we played, or a major change to the personnel - then yes, losing
       might be secondary to what we discovered. But... we did neither
       of those things. We stuck with an old, tired, losing gameplan
       featuring the same players who've been struggling ever since the
       semi-final (and for some even longer than that). What did we
       learn that we didn't already know?
       #Post#: 62266--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: Fearless Fred
       Date: March 24, 2021, 9:38 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       If anything I would've thought that the Nations Cup in the
       Autumn would've been the ideal time to give some of the
       potentials a run-out. It was a competition without the baggage
       of the 6 Nations, playing against a range of styles & opponents.
       That would've been a chance to evaluate if some of the players
       who may be needed in the '23 RWC squad have what it takes on the
       full international scale. A 6 Nations is always a risk to the
       English coaching staff as there's such history involved that
       taking a risk with selection is harder for this than for a
       summer tour, Autumn Internationals, etc.
       #Post#: 62273--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: Bolly-Quin
       Date: March 24, 2021, 10:44 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       --- Quote from: JammyGit link ---
       >
       > Kruis is in Japan, he was never available.
       >
       > I just don't see how it's a defence of Eddie that the big
       problem everyone could see a mile off - which he scoffed at -
       turned into an even bigger problem that he did nothing about. If
       he had taken the brave choice of binning off the Saracens
       players temporarily and we'd still lost, at least people would
       have understood, and the replacements would've had a fair shake
       at proving themselves worthy.
       >
       --- End Quote ---
       The Kruis point is linked to the relegation of Sarries - I know
       he wasn't available Jammy, but he would have been, if Sarries
       hadn't been relegated - that was the point, which I think you
       know.
       In his estimation, wholesale change to replace Sarries players
       may have been a worse proposition, with little time to prepare
       for. It didn't seem like it was all having an effect until the
       final of the Autumn Cup, which we scraped through. I can
       certainly see a scenario that if he had made changes to the key
       playing position occupied by Sarries players and it had also
       gone wrong, then he'd have been pilloried as well - I'm not sure
       people would have understood - some just don't like him - some
       never have and seem have come round to to not liking him.
       It was a gamble - play unprepared players or go for untried ones
       - and it ended up a mistake that he and his players will have to
       own.
       I take your point about his scoffing - and his mind games often
       seem to have the opposite effect.
       #Post#: 62275--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: Bolly-Quin
       Date: March 24, 2021, 10:59 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       --- Quote from: Fearless Fred link ---
       >
       > If anything I would've thought that the Nations Cup in the
       Autumn would've been the ideal time to give some of the
       potentials a run-out. It was a competition without the baggage
       of the 6 Nations, playing against a range of styles & opponents.
       That would've been a chance to evaluate if some of the players
       who may be needed in the '23 RWC squad have what it takes on the
       full international scale. A 6 Nations is always a risk to the
       English coaching staff as there's such history involved that
       taking a risk with selection is harder for this than for a
       summer tour, Autumn Internationals, etc.
       >
       --- End Quote ---
       At the time our great Govt were saying that the war would be
       over by Christmas...
       In August and September, prior to the Autumn cup, Saracens were
       playing well and won many of their games, including Leinster
       away - they had good form and were playing well prior to the
       final 6N game carried over from earlier in the year and the
       Autumn cup: there was no reason, at that stage, to see what
       would happen next. EJ also wanted more silverware to make the
       team feel better. They won it, but it was papering over cracks
       that had only just began to form.
       The cup was followed by an absence of rugby for Sarries players
       - EJ gambled that he could keep them interested and in tip-top
       mental form, which, I suggest they were to be found wanting as a
       result of their relegation playing on their minds as much as
       playing no rugby.
       If, at the end of the Autumn cup he'd decided to draft 6 new
       players - to replace some of the previously most valuable
       England players - I think people would have been on his back
       even more than now.
       #Post#: 62278--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: stoquin
       Date: March 24, 2021, 11:15 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       What about Gatland, he is available shortly.
       Retire to a safe distance and light blue touch paper.....boom
       #Post#: 62279--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: honkytonk
       Date: March 24, 2021, 11:28 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Asking "who is available" is a pointless question.  I dont say
       that as having a dig at anyone, more a case of, there is always
       someone available.  To the outside world, Jones was not
       available when England got him.  He had only been at the
       Stormers about a week.  Its the same when people talk about our
       next appointment.
       #Post#: 62287--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: JammyGit
       Date: March 24, 2021, 1:57 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       --- Quote from: Bolly-Quin link ---
       >
       > The Kruis point is linked to the relegation of Sarries - I
       know he wasn't available Jammy, but he would have been, if
       Sarries hadn't been relegated - that was the point, which I
       think you know.
       --- End Quote ---
       No, I didn't really get that - wasn't being awkward, sorry! He
       did announce he was leaving in early summer last year - and
       could've chosen to stay. It wasn't news to Eddie and didn't
       disrupt preparations unlike the injuries.
       --- Quote ---
       > In his estimation, wholesale change to replace Sarries players
       may have been a worse proposition, with little time to prepare
       for. It didn't seem like it was all having an effect until the
       final of the Autumn Cup, which we scraped through. I can
       certainly see a scenario that if he had made changes to the key
       playing position occupied by Sarries players and it had also
       gone wrong, then he'd have been pilloried as well - I'm not sure
       people would have understood - some just don't like him - some
       never have and seem have come round to to not liking him.
       >
       > It was a gamble - play unprepared players or go for untried
       ones - and it ended up a mistake that he and his players will
       have to own.
       >
       > I take your point about his scoffing - and his mind games
       often seem to have the opposite effect.
       >
       --- End Quote ---
       I suppose the point about the Six Nations is that he knew by the
       time it started that the Saracens players wouldn't have played
       *any* rugby for months. The Autumn Nations Cup happened in the
       same month that the Premiership ended. It's a huge difference.
       #Post#: 62301--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: Muzza
       Date: March 25, 2021, 5:00 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Is this history repeating itself.
       It feels like the Wallabies in 2005. After a terrible year they
       headed north for their annual European tour and the losses
       continue - Eddie was sacked within a few days of arriving back
       in OZ.
       #Post#: 62303--------------------------------------------------
       Re: Eddie Jones's future hangs in the balance
   DIR By: Bolly-Quin
       Date: March 25, 2021, 5:40 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       --- Quote from: JammyGit link ---
       >
       > No, I didn't really get that - wasn't being awkward, sorry! He
       did announce he was leaving in early summer last year - and
       could've chosen to stay. It wasn't news to Eddie and didn't
       disrupt preparations unlike the injuries.
       >
       > I suppose the point about the Six Nations is that he knew by
       the time it started that the Saracens players wouldn't have
       played *any* rugby for months. The Autumn Nations Cup happened
       in the same month that the Premiership ended. It's a huge
       difference.
       >
       --- End Quote ---
       On this issue and just to add to the debate, "Kyle Sinckler has
       (only) made one league start for Bristol (this season), the same
       number as George Ford and Ben Youngs at Leicester, and one more
       than Anthony Watson at Bath and Luke Cowan-Dickie at Exeter
       [Courtesy of the Guardian
  HTML https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2021/mar/25/cvcs-six-nations-deal-presents-risk-but-raises-hope-of-global-rugby-calendar];<br
       />bracketed text is mine - read article for entire context.
       So it's not just Sarries players that haven't played much. I
       wonder how much rugby any of the England squad played and
       whether this differs from the other unions involved with the 6N.
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