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‘I feel sorry for Japan’: Sonny Bill Williams slams Eddie Jones’ ‘disgrace’
Following the Wallabies’ record defeat at the Rugby World Cup in September, coach Eddie Jones was asked repeatedly about a reported meeting with Japan to become their new head coach.
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“I don’t know what you’re talking about mate,” Jones told a room full of watchful journalists at Lyon’s OL Stadium. The coach continued to deny the link for the months that followed.
But after stepping away from his role as the Wallabies’ coach last month, the Japanese Rugby Football Union confirmed on Wednesday that Jones had signed on for four years.
About 53 weeks after Jones was sacked by the Rugby Football Union as England’s coach, before then joining Australia, the 63-year-old will return to the Land of the Rising Sun for a second stint with the Brave Blossoms.
Two-time Rugby World Cup-winning All Black Sonny Bill Williams has teed off at the incoming Japan coach by suggesting that the former Wallabies boss “lied” to the Australian rugby public.
“It’s quite sad, isn’t it? My thoughts on this whole saga is that he lied,” Williams told Nine’s Wide World of Sports.
“Obviously he lied to the players, he lied to the public, he lied to the Australian rugby union. What a disgrace. I guess that’s my first point.
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“Second point would be, I feel sorry for Japan. His track record speaks for itself. I’m a big believer in the proof is in the pudding and what is his proof? His proof is he’s been fired, sacked from England in the last few years. He’s burned a lot of bridges.
“I actually feel sorry for Japan that they believe this guy is gonna take them somewhere where his track record shows that he hasn’t been able to do. It seems like he’s a little bit out of touch with what’s going on.
“I guess I’m just speaking from an ex-player’s point of view. I could never believe in someone that I knew was pretty much full of crap. Japanese culture is all built on respect, loyalty, things that he’s shown that he’s not about.
“If it wasn’t for the captain’s call, the great captain’s call that it was, he might not even have had a job before Australia’s disastrous World Cup.”
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When Rugby Australia unveiled Jone as Dave Rennie’s surprise replacement at the start of this year, Wallabies’ fans rejoiced. Jones was supposed to be the saviour that the sport so desperately needed Down Under.
Jones took photos with passionate Australian rugby fans at the Sydney Sevens – they loved the then-new Wallabies coach, and Jones appeared to love them back. It was supposed to be the dawn of a new era.
Following months and months of headlines and a reignited rivalry with the NRL, Jones’ second stint with the Wallabies officially got underway with a big loss to the Springboks in South Africa.
But that was just the start. Argentina snuck by the Aussies in Sydney and New Zealand swept Jones’ men in a two-Test Bledisloe Cup series.
With the World Cup rapidly approaching, Jones made the questionable decision to omit veterans Michael Hooper, Quade Cooper and Bernard Foley from a youthful Wallabies squad – it didn’t work.
The Wallabies went to the World Cup and returned much earlier than expected, with the men in gold failing to make it out of the group stage for the first time in their history.
Australia only won two of nine Test matches under coach Jones in 2023.
“My last point would be, from an Australian rugby point of view; one of gratitude because we’re moving, we can move in the right direction,” Williams continued.
“We want to get back to where we are, which has been a rugby powerhouse and one of the few countries that have won two Rugby World Cups – an illustrious past playing on the international stage.
“They have great talent within the squad, I truly believe it. Phil Waugh has said some great stuff and what they’re looking at and trying to achieve now bringing everything under one umbrella so they can move forward in the right direction.
“I have my own thoughts and belief on the processes, some processes, that need to happen for that to occur, but it seems like you’re moving in the right direction.
“I work on Stan so I’m in this space, I’ve been in the space for the last three years and I have a good connection with a lot of the players and I want to see these players thrive on and off the field and hopefully they can start.
“Does he owe Rugby Australia, the public, an apology? I’d say they should be thanking him because he’s left and hopefully things can change.”
Comments on RugbyPass
_Dan Carter weighs in on who should be Scott Robertson's All Black 10_ Dan: “It’s a toss up between Beudy and Dmac, although Mounga would be nice - but he can’t… so…” The Rugby Public: “Thanks Dan. For nuthin!”
1 Go to commentsEngland did this way back for the Croke Park match in the 2000’s. The shame actually seemed to weigh on them during the match. It will not be easy for Northhampton players to rationalize how their army went into a stadium of a major city of the then United Kingdom and opened fire indiscriminantly into terraces killed 13 and wounding scores. I am sure with a pro setup they will get this balance right. That said the match has really little historical relevance for Irish supporters any more. Sure, it will motivate Leinster but Northhampton should not overly consider it or weigh on it in my opinion. Dowson is right to learn the historical importance and Northhampton are indeed giving the occasion the due respect. It is important to show respect. But that’s enough for Northhampton. Fair play to them.
11 Go to commentsDouble World Cup Champions ? Wow since when did 4 become 2!
209 Go to comments“See you in the final” from a winning (Irish) team is just away of wishing a team well for the rest of the tournament. It’s actually saying I hope we both make it to the final. Etzebeth was the only player who PUBLICLY said that his team would make the final after that match. Does anyone honestly think Ireland who took 100 years to beat NZ and got hammerred by them in 2019 would for the slightest moment not take the perilous threat as seriously as it should be taken? Getting sick of Boks and Kiwis who spend all year every year trying boasting about how great and humble they are and then accusing others of arrogance. Respect people by trying to understand them before hitting a pretty humble people with this crap.
13 Go to commentsThe feelings of gratitude I feel when thinking about the Boks is difficult to describe. It really means a lot to people here. I would flat out ask Ox for a big hug if I met him in person. And then probably pass out after the squeeze. Totally worth it.
1 Go to commentsFarrell seems to be an outstanding coach and Ireland a very well prepared team. But they looked like they had no plan B against NZ. Maybe they really were looking past them, as Eben says.
13 Go to commentsMaybe if you come once in your life in France you won’t writte so much nonsense 🙃
1 Go to commentsWhy did they kill 14 people at a gaelic football match? What had happened earlier that day? Dowson sounds absolutely pathetic, believing what the Irish say about his people, rather than believing what his people say about the Irish.
11 Go to commentsI haven't really experienced the Irish as arrogant but I guess the players maybe got ahead of themselves after a big win. Just thought it being Ireland and their love afair with WC QF exits and it being the ABs maybe they would have taken it a bit more seriously. Maybe they did and just lost anyways, who knows.
13 Go to commentsNot surprising, they tend to get very carried away with themselves very quickly. I’ve never seen a team so devastated at the final whistle than those irish players in that QF, you’d think they had lost the final.
13 Go to commentsJust a roundabout way of claiming to great fun. Self -praise is no praise, frenchie.
1 Go to commentsIreland have played the ABs since the first game 1905 a total of 37 times. The ABs have won 32 and Ireland 5 times. If we look since the first WC, then they have played each other 28 times. All Ireland’s 5 wins have come since 2016. So the ABs won 23 games. Since Ireland won their first game in 2016, they have won 5 and the ABs 4 times. Fairly even. Whatever anyone says, beating ABs consistently is bloody difficult, and when you manage to win a few, show respect to them. Period.
209 Go to comments‘Mom'.
1 Go to commentsA specialist in hitting smaller guys hard and late. Serial cheap shot merchant who deserves more than the usual token sanction for such actions.
1 Go to commentsI like to see the Crusaders lose as much as the next non-Crusaders fan, but the fact that most of their best players have not been available this year is being hand waved away like it shouldn’t effect them. It’s no coincidence that their first dominant performance came when they had more of their best players back. This is not rocket science. If they can stay fit their team at the business end of the season will include Tamaiti Williams, Codie Taylor, Fletcher Newell, Scott Barrett, Quentin Strange, Ethan Blackadder and Cullen Grace in the forwards - most of whom have barely, or not played this year. That is an outstanding pack that have not played together this season. McLeod, Havili, Aumua, Reece, and Halfpenny will be a very different prospect behind their first choice pack as well. Having said all that Penney’s record is scratchy at best, but given the players that have left and their injury list I’m reserving judgement. Penney’s appointment, a bit like Foz, has a similar stench of the incumbent having too much say in his replacement. They are lacking a truly high quality and experienced 10 which will make it hard for them to go the whole way IMO, but the list of teams who would want to play them in the finals will be very short.
17 Go to commentsWhere’s this people's champion come from? Irish people yes….other people? Their arrogance has become breathtaking. Not tested? Oh dear.
209 Go to commentsIf a coach having Crusaders heritage is so sacrosanct, why did the Crusaders not pursue Vern Cotter as Scott Robertson’s replacement?
17 Go to commentsFinau is definitely operating on razor thin margins. He hasn’t done anything wrong… yet. But a player going into contact 6 inches lower than he is expecting, without him even knowing, will end in disaster. You can imagine a situation where the pass dies on Edmed and he has to bend down a little lower to catch it at the last second. Finau’s hit would have been catastrophic. The margins are just too fine. He needs to study how PSDT, at 6’7”, manages to drop his tackle height and exert just as much force with close zero danger of taking someone’s head off. Given how poorly NZ has adapted to lower their tackle height, and that this issue which has plagued the ABs for years and played a big part in them not winning the World Cup, I thought NZR and all SR coaches would be prioritising sorting this issue out. If I was Razor I would be on the phone to Clayton MacMillan and Samipeni Finau saying exactly that. Finau is a monster and shaping up to be the closest thing to Kaino since Kaino, but I wouldn’t risk selecting him for the ABs at the moment.
18 Go to commentsThe surprising stat I saw in the Blues game when showing Sotutu equaling the Blues forwards record was that Akira has not scored a try since 2019. Now my memory is pretty bad when it comes to those sorts of the things, I can remember his AB try though, but anyway I can’t see I can remember his last blues touchdown or any in recent years. Surely that still has to be a bogus stat. Maybe excludes SRA games?
3 Go to commentsDude to me looks pretty fast for a big man, nearly 2m and 130kg, in his workout vid he was signed off. Possibly a bit slow on his reads movement wise though, but I’ve not got anything to compare him to. Hope the dude nails it and finds his sport, could have been a devastating lock in rugby if he wasn’t a footballer growing up.
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