'I don't know how you could coach a Lions team in a blazer... I was bemused by that'
Warren Gatland has ruled out coaching England, with the 2021 British and Irish Lions boss unable to resist having a dig at Eddie Jones.
The Wales chief has been confirmed as Lions boss for his third successive tour, quickly scotching any talk of replacing Jones as England head coach in the future.
Gatland has the chance to go unbeaten in Lions Test matches for a record third consecutive tour in South Africa, after winning the 2013 series in Australia and drawing in New Zealand four years later.
The 55-year-old will relinquish his job as Wales head coach after this autumn’s World Cup, starting full-time with the Lions in August 2020, but after that he hopes to take a Super Rugby coaching role in his native New Zealand.
Jones laughed off any thoughts of coaching the Lions by claiming “the last thing I want to do is spend eight weeks in a blazer” – and in distancing himself from an England role Gatland offered his riposte to the current Red Rose chief.
"I can categorically tell all the Welsh fans that I will not be coaching England."
Warren Gatland exclusively tells talkSPORT that he will not be replacing Eddie Jones as England head coach.
What do you make of this? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/TK79NCh3sR
— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) June 12, 2019
“I can tell you definitively now I will not be coaching England, there is no way I will be coaching England unless I put a blazer on or something!” said Gatland, referencing Jones’ comments about the Lions.
“At the moment I am talking to a couple of people about what I am going to do post the Lions but there is nothing I have looked at signing or anything formal at the moment.
“My whole focus at the moment is about this role and planning and preparing Wales for the World Cup. After today I probably won’t think about this for the next six months in terms of doing the best job for Wales and maybe start thinking about what my other options are and what I am going to do.
Music to the ears of Welsh fans…https://t.co/Pxr1nTju9p
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) June 12, 2019
“I think my coaching path’s going to take a different direction. I’d like to go back to New Zealand hopefully if there’s an opportunity in Super Rugby.”
Gatland had been touted as a replacement for Jones, whose England contract expires in 2021. The current Wales’ boss Lions duties would have left him available at just the right time for England, but he has previously joked England would not be able to afford his services.
Now he has ruled out coaching England definitely, paving the way for a future Super Rugby coaching role – and perhaps a long-term crack at leading the All Blacks.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bvdzyb6gBoG/
Gatland also admitted his next Lions tour will be his last, with the Kiwi having acted as forwards coach in the 2009 tour to South Africa and he has been installed as head coach every time since.
The longest-serving Test boss also branded leading the Lions as his toughest challenge in rugby, revealing his surprise at Jones’ scathing comments about coaching the famed touring side.
Gatland said: “I don’t know how you could coach a Lions team in a blazer. I was bemused by that. It is one of the hardest things that I’ve ever had to do as a coach.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bvs_7NPg72m/
“Seeing how hard those other coaches worked on the last tour, with guys down in the team room at seven, eight in the morning until nine, 10 at night, planning and preparing as well as coaching two teams twice a day, getting ready for matches – it is the hardest thing.
“Whether that was a subtle way for him to rule himself out of contention or not, I don’t know.”
– Press Association
WATCH: Episode six of Don’t Mess with Jim, the new weekly RugbyPass series hosted by former Scotland international Hamilton
Comments on RugbyPass
Can’t see Toulouse beating Leinster at this rate.
7 Go to commentsADP was having a very average game until winning that penalty for Toulouse, sticking his big head in the way. “The head of God”?
7 Go to commentsHarlequins doing their best to do as little damage as possible with all the possession. Looks like they skipped catch and pass drills this week.
7 Go to commentsSeeing pictures of Jacques high-fiving it with Irish players breaks my heart. Too soon. I need more time.
1 Go to commentsquins is all over the place. The minute they get the ball they panic. Quins can still win tho just need to win all rucks otherwise just don't bother.
7 Go to commentsGreat wins for the male & female kiwi sides. Ireland not far away..
1 Go to commentsWhy is this dude getting so much coverage? Usually knobs like this get cancelled.
2 Go to commentsWow. What was that? A 3 million word meandering article about what exactly?
1 Go to commentsNice piece of writing. And yes the Sharks pulled a rabbit from the hat and were a little lucky with that penalty try that wasn’t given… however the Sharks (with their resources) should be way more consistent and should be putting teams like Claremont away for breakfast. I expect more from them and hope they kick on now.
8 Go to commentsJust what the Sharks needed to get things going in the right direction Defence on the outside really creates havoc for the whole team and needs to be addressed.
8 Go to commentsWell done guys both teams will be ready to play knockout rugby.
1 Go to commentsSurprised that Ramos isn't starting at 15. But what a squad of galacticos!
2 Go to commentsWhy is it a snub? What journalistic garbage is that? Sure the guy is a great player, but there are plenty of loose forwards and not all of them can be Springboks. Also, I know of no-one who doubts Rassie’s judgment. South Africa has a conveyor belt of loose forwards that just keeps producing, so the competition is intense. I certainly wish him well, but there is no entitlement and there is no snub.
17 Go to commentsSkelton may be brought back for the Wallabies so that would be the only reason that may hinder Wilson. Easily the form, most skilful and game IQ of any Oz 8. Valentini’s best and favourite position is 6, but lineouts may be an issue with Skelton, Valentini and Wilson. Will be interesting what Schmidt goes for but for me Wilson should be picked on form. Schmidt rewards work rate, skill and consistency. All that glitters every so often won’t be in contention. Greely is one of those players that has a knack of making the right decision. A coach is going to love him because he knows week in week out he’s going to get the job done. The second try Greely wasn’t the guy who made the initial break it was Flook, Greely was at the bottom of the ruck when Flook was off along the sideline. Greely got up and made the effort to catch up with play but also read the play nicely and hit the pass from Campbell at pace and then held the pass beautifully to Ryan.
6 Go to commentsSpot on Ben. Dead right. Havili looked great at 10. Easily the highest rugby IQ of any NZ player these days. Getting a kick charged down is a result of getting used to adjusting your depth to the line at 10, which he will sort out with time. But other than that it was an outstanding first effort in that position this year. I think the NZ media has misunderstood this directive from Razor. Havili might rank behind B Barrett this year, but Beuden is 33 this month and won't last much longer. DMaC is great but flaky and not really a test match animal (his efforts in Dunedin versus Aus last year for example). If Razor can't have Mounga, DMaC is too unstructured for Razor (and is just too small for test rugby). Havili will end up our first choice first five, and in partnership with Jodie will be excellent. Two triple threat operators in tandem, and big bodies and tough tacklers to boot. Jordoe will be the ABs goal kicker. I am an Aucklander and Blues (and Warriors) fan, but Havili at 10 is going to be sensational in time… he can be the best first five in the world by the end of this year. No question.
6 Go to commentsSharks deserved to be far further back by the last quarter. Their tackling was awful, their set pieces were disappointing, their defensive organization was poor (especially on the Kok side of the D line), they kept making unnecessary errors, and they never looked like cracking the Clermont defense during those first 60m. Masuku kept them in touch, with some help from the Clermont generosity on penalty opportunities. Agree with the writer of this article. It was belligerence, and ability to raise their pressure game just enough, that turned the last quarter into a Bok-style shutout. Clermont have a reputation of not playing the full 80m, and there was a bit of that for sure. But, quite often when the intensity of a team drops off in the last quarter credit is due to the opponent for tiring them out. At 60m, with the Kok try, you thought that just maybe the game was on. At 70m, with the Mapimpi contribution, one felt that Clermont were fading, while facing a team that would maintain the pressure game through the final whistle. Good win in the end, but the Sharks are still playing way below their potential. And with their resources, and a coach that has had enough time to figure things out, they are running out of excuses.
8 Go to commentsGood riddance
1 Go to commentswel the crusaders were beaten by a queensland reds side that hadnt beaten them at home since 1999 and queensland reds partied like it was 1999
6 Go to commentsHard to disagree with the 5 points - with the exception that Wilson should be a squad member but, depending on the other loose forward selections, is not yet a shoo-in. McReight is. Aussie is looking a lot better this year and JS has some selection options. Also, Havili’s tendency to get caught, charged down is also a liability at times but he seemed focused (mostly) and is definitely a consideration for utility back-up. Still feel Reihana is a better prospect at 1st five for Saders.
6 Go to commentsYeah nah, still not sure on Havili tbh. Even though I’m a Crusaders fan through and through I’d be stunned if Razor considers him after seeing some of the stunning talent coming through up North.
6 Go to comments