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Farrell and Itoje unimpressed with England omission
Eddie Jones revealed Owen Farrell and Maro Itoje “hated” being rested for England’s clash with Argentina on Saturday but said they must accept “I run the team”.
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British and Irish Lions duo Farrell and Itoje will play no part in the Six Nations champions’ first autumn international due to their “exceptional workloads” this season.
England head coach Jones said the Saracens men were not impressed with being given a weekend off, but is adamant it is in their best interests.
“They hate it, which is a great reaction. They hate it because they want to play every Test,” said the canny Australian.
“They are proud of playing for England and they want to be part of a winning team. We have got to convince them that it is in their best interests for this period of time.
“They’ve had exceptional workloads. They’ve played all three [Lions] Tests, played consistently for their clubs, played consistently for us and we feel it’s in their best interests to do some conditioning work.
“They have got to understand I run the team. I make the decisions. It comes down to my gut feeling for what they need.
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“It’s a bit like being a horse trainer. You get all this information but you’ve got to look at the person and see what they are ready to do.”
