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England's current squad 'too old for the World Cup'

By PA
Press Association

Eddie Jones has warned the older members of his current England squad changes will be made between now and the World Cup.

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The Australian will take charge of Tests against USA and Canada next month, where a more youthful group will get the opportunity to impress with 11 internationals away with the British and Irish Lions this summer.

Jones expects the majority of that group on the Lions tour to South Africa will be part of the England camp for the World Cup in two years time but is on the lookout for fresh blood in his quest to help the team seal glory in France.

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“If we kept the squad we had now, we’d be too old for the World Cup. There is a certain profile of around 28 years of age for a World Cup winning side,” the 61-year-old said.

“We have been bringing that down slowly over the last two years and we need to keep accelerating that because the more senior guys keep getting older.

“It’s about getting the balance right in the squad between what we have in terms of very good players and 11 good enough to play for the Lions, so they are pretty good players and if they keep their desire and form there is no reason why those guys can’t go to the World Cup.

“All of those guys are probably 25 and above as a general point, so we want to bring some younger guys in with energy, risklessness (sic) and desire that will lift the team higher and higher.”

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Four years ago on England’s tour to Argentina, which took place alongside the Lions being in New Zealand, Tom Curry and Sam Underhill were unearthed and the ‘kamikaze twins’ would be crucial in a side which reached the World Cup final two years later.

Last week the former Wallabies boss spent time with the Under-20s and told them they had a chance to feature in France in 2023.

After a poor fifth-place showing at the Six Nations, where England had six players aged 30 or over, a trimming of the average age is high on Jones’ list of priorities with uncapped Harlequins duo Marcus Smith and Alex Dombrandt set to be named in Thursday’s squad to face USA and Canada.

“I might put statures of them up in the front,” Jones said of Curry and Underhill. “They moved people out of the back row and took their positions, so there is this opportunity for this group of players and that is why it is so exciting.”

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Some of England’s regulars not with the Lions could be rested after a gruelling 24 months, with Ben Youngs and George Ford due to be given the summer off, but Leicester team-mate Ellis Genge and Kyle Sinckler should be involved in the summer internationals.

Jones admitted Manu Tuilagi would need to be assessed after only returning last month from an Achilles injury.

Following a disastrous Six Nations campaign, there was a chance England could have a new man at the helm for the USA and Canada games but an RFU review into the tournament published in April offered its “full support” to the current head coach, who had extended his deal after the 2019 World Cup.

“I made a decision I think I am best coach to coach England, the RFU agreed,” Jones bullishly stated.

“They might change their mind, (but) I am absolutely, certainly committed. Coaching, you take the good with the bad. No one wins 100 per cent of Test matches and our record shows we are travelling pretty well in terms of win percentages.”

Jones England Six Nations
(Photo by Dave Rogers/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

One of the review’s recommendations revealed the RFU had decided that external rugby experts will be brought in to “inform all future debriefs to provide additional insight and support” to the England chief.

But Jones added: “In terms of experts coming in, I am asking experts to come in all the time. I spent last Friday with Danny Kerry, England hockey coach, last week at Hull FC. I want the best people involved in England rugby, so I don’t see that as any different from what we have been doing.”

Jones has invited numerous key figures into England camps or met them, which includes Sir Clive Woodward who has been a vocal critic of late. But the suggestion was the RFU would now decide who the “external rugby experts” would be.

Eddie Jones
Eddie Jones /PA

“But I am the head coach and the head coach makes the decision at the end of the day,” he insisted.

“I welcome people in, we’ve had Brian Ashton in, I’ve had coffee with Clive Woodward and he spoke to me. Maybe he doesn’t want a coffee with me now by the sounds of it but I encourage coaches to come in because I want to pick their brains. There is a lot more smarter coaches out there than me.”

Talking in the aftermath of Naomi Osaka’s decision to withdraw from the French Open due to the furore caused by her boycott of media duties, Jones praised the bravery of the Japanese tennis player.

She had cited mental heath issues behind her reason to not take part in press conferences at the tournament before subsequently pulling out.

Jones said: “The only thing I would say is she has shown a lot of courage to stand up for what she thinks is right and we want our players to have plenty of character too for what they think is right.”

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J
Jon 27 minutes ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

32 Go to comments
j
john 3 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

15 Go to comments
A
Adrian 5 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

15 Go to comments
T
Trevor 7 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
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