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Austin Healey bites back after Eddie Jones' 'egg-on-face' jibe
Austin Healey has bitten back after England boss Eddie Jones had a laugh at his expense during last Sunday’s media briefing in Rome following the round two Guinness Six Nations win over Italy. The ex-international back had written in a pre-game newspaper column that a defeat to the Azzurri didn’t seem “completely ridiculous” and that Jones needed to stop making coaching mistakes.
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Asked towards the end of the briefing who had taken over the England captaincy on the Stadio Olimpico pitch when Tom Curry was replaced, Jones ignored the query and instead asked the media who were on the Zoom call who writes the Healey column in the UK Telegraph.
Healey has now issued his riposte to Jones, who had told the media to go and wipe the egg off the columnist’s face following England’s 33-0 win. “England beat Italy convincingly at the weekend and most people would have expected that,” wrote Healey in his latest Telegraph column in response to Jones’ jibe.
“I was concerned that Italy had a chance. I know Eddie made a comment in the press conference afterwards, asking who wrote Austin Healey’s column for him.
“He was asked who was captain when Tom Curry went off but replied by asking about me before adding: ‘Okay, so you better go and wipe the egg off his face, mate. If you can do that for me I will be happy!’
“Eddie, as an Englishman I’m always happy to see my country win, it fills me with pride. My concern was driven by the coaching mistakes we all saw against Scotland. I’m not sure what you were asking of me Eddie but I suggest you either stop making mistakes (and I’m here to offer help with that) or stop reading the press. I’m not sure you will be happy if you continue to do both!”
What had riled Jones was what Healey wrote in the wake of the round one England loss to Scotland. “When I see someone like Ben Youngs, England’s most-capped scrum-half of all time, you start to wonder whether Eddie has turned off people’s instincts,” penned an unimpressed Healey.
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“Has he made them so stringent in the patterns they follow, that they actually forget the nature of opportunity? What we are seeing is players are staying blindly loyal to the framework, but the framework keeps changing. Players are getting tens of caps because they are obedient and are following exactly what the coach wants them to do.
“The worry, looking at Youngs, is how Marcus Smith might be affected in the long run. He is a proven match-winner in the final quarter. Yet you take him off for someone in George Ford who you had not selected in your original squad two weeks beforehand.
“That is a coaching mistake. As is constantly chopping and changing your style. How many of those mistakes does it take until you run out of coaching lives? I’m not saying it will happen, but a loss to Italy does not seem completely ridiculous. There is that much uncertainty and confusion in the way England are playing.”
Comments on RugbyPass
To me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
30 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
30 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
30 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
30 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
30 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
30 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
1 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
30 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
17 Go to commentsNot good to hear Ulster described as “financially troubled”. Did not think it was getting to that level. I would hope the Irish system of spreading players of talent away from Leinster would kick in now. Better to have a Leinster fringe player with Ulster or Connacht, then getting only a few games a season in Dublin. 10, for example, would seem to be a case for spreading the talent. I would not be at all adverse to a SA man coming in as head coach/DR. Ludeke is worth trying. Certainly got a long and impressive coaching career at this level…..149 games in SR, then Japan, 30 years experience. And Ulster’s ledger of successful SA coaches and players is on the positive side. Is talk of Ruan Pienaar interested in coming back as a coach…..could be a good combination with Ludeke. And Pienaar and family would have no settling in to do, one would judge. He loved life in Ulster when there, by all reports.
1 Go to commentsSome thoughts to consider here, Sam. Thanks
2 Go to commentsI think he is right, SBW is respected in RSA. The guy who never stood up is a worm. Sseems lots of NZ SBW hate, you do the crime do the time.
17 Go to comments