Maybe we should take Eddie Jones on his word – the ”stuff up in St Etienne” really is his fault.
Jones might have been doing what many a coach has in the wake of humbling defeat – deflecting the criticism away from underperforming players by accepting the blame, while not really believing it. But if he doesn’t, he should.
Jones’ experience and record buys him plenty of credit but his decision to strip experience and leaders from the Wallabies for this tournament is looking like a catastrophic move for their chances in France. It has also led to a historic defeat – the coach wasn’t even born when the Fijians last beat Australia in 1954.
He was booed when his face went up on the big screen. There may have been a few Australian voices joining in the din but there’s no doubt the French “neutrals” aren’t fans of the former England coach.
“I’m a bit used to it mate and after that I probably deserve more,” Jones said. “They should probably be throwing baguettes or croissants at me. It’s not good enough. I deserve whatever I get.”
Eddie Jones, Head Coach of Australia, looks on at full-time following the Rugby World Cup France 2023 match between Australia and Fiji at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
On current course, the team and Jones will be coming home early and might well be pelted with bacon and egg rolls at Sydney airport.
Sonny Bill Williams called Jones out on the Stan Sport commentary, saying he’d left Wallabies No.10 Carter Gordon without the support of an older mentor.
“These selections – we’re in a high performance arena and sometimes you live and die by your selections and Eddie Jones got found out tonight” Williams said.
Yes, Sonny Bill is best mates with Quade Cooper and both of them are seemingly still upset at his snubbing. But Jones has gone into a World Cup with Gordon and Ben Donaldson as his only two options at No.10. It’s hard to see how he picks Gordon again against Wales, with Andrew Kellaway a must to return at No.15.
Jones bristled when told about Sonny Bill’s comments.
“When you’re a television commentator you’re always right. Maybe I need to be a television commentator then I’ll be right all the time,” Jones countered.
“We’ve gone with a young team. I’ve got no regrets at all. We’re building a team for the future and we’re going to go through some pain and some of the young players are going to go through some pain. You generally have an apprenticeship. He [Gordon] has plenty of support.”
(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
It was Jones’ call to go with a youth project for this tournament.
“If that’s the wrong decision then I’ll be held accountable for that. But I think Australian rugby needs to move on to a younger team and I’m prepared to experience some pain to go through to leave Australia with a team that is capable of doing really well at a World Cup,” said Jones.
“And it’s not to say we can’t do that, we’ve had a bit of a setback today, but that’s all part of being at a World Cup. I do remember South Africa lost a game and won the World Cup, so funnier things have happened.”
There were fans who felt Eddie had a few tricks up his sleeve and would turn the team’s fortunes around after a 0-5 start to his comeback. They were buoyed briefly by the win over Georgia, but the reality must be sinking in as his record went to 1-7 – this is the start of the 2027 World Cup campaign.
Jones hinted at it again when he described this powerful Fiji team as one at the end of it’s cycle. His team is a work in progress.
“They’ve got a quality team, they’re well coached … probably close to their peak. We’re at the beginning of our cycle,” said Jones.
“I think if you look at the records, the stats show that that’s the youngest finishing group for Australia since 1995. So amongst the gloom, there’s some really promising things, particularly from the younger players.”
Did he have a message for Australian supporters? “Get ready for Wales. I don’t coach the fans, I appreciate all their support. We’re doing our absolute best and I apologise. It’s my fault. I take full responsibility for it.”
He was pleased with the fight his team showed, and there’s no denying that they threw everything into their vain bid to run down Fiji’s big lead.
“I’ve seen teams go away when Fiji is like that and we didn’t,” said Jones. “We stuck in there and hung in there. We just couldn’t get one part of our game really going. If we could have got our maul going that could have changed the game but we couldn’t get that going. We didn’t get any ascendancy in the scrum and we were beaten at the breakdown.”
As for next week and the must-win match with Wales, what does Jones say to lift his team again?
“It’s like any game – you’re trying to learn. You’re trying to work out what you’ve got to do next week,” said Jones.
“Except that we didn’t play well. Try to work out why we didn’t play well. But take the positives out of it and build for next week. A young team’s no different from an older team, except that a younger team has more variation in their performance. And that’s what we’re seeing at the moment. And it’s not good variation. So we’ve got one week to fix it.
Jones is playing the long game, prioritising the future ahead of the now.
“I’ve gone down the line of picking a young team and I want this young team to be a good team at the moment.
We had a bad day today, which can happen,” he said.
“It definitely hurts me personally, 100 per cent. And as I said, I’m 100 per cent responsible for it.
“And we’ve got to be better next week. So that’s my responsibility.”
Phil Kearns Love Child
Roar Rookie
A Subbies 5th grade coach could do better lol
Guess
Roar Rookie
Best comment straight to the point :thumbup: :stoked:
Guess
Roar Rookie
Right hooper is past it look at mcreight he's been a beast :laughing: All these old players were holding them back from winning :laughing:
Guess
Roar Rookie
Nah to them it only works one way: Eddie has bad cattle and Rennie is bad coach. Even though bad coach could do better somehow :laughing:
Phil Kearns Love Child
Roar Rookie
Robbie Dean's must be having a quiet chuckle to himself
Ken Catchpole's Other Leg
Roar Guru
And I think it polite to “like” your comment and not bag you at all, Mugs. Obtuse?! Mate, I’ve had worse sledges, even from backs. For the record, it was not obtuseness, it’s a concept very few forwards, let alone front rowers, understand. I was a leaning into ‘the poetry of princely attack’, since you asked. If the second and third most important players in a squad are the back up tightheads, who d’ya reckon are the two most important backs in a squad? It’d offer that it’s the 10, and the reserve 10 (on the bench or in a suit). Play must be made, and the maker plays to leave his mark. Leave playmakers at home, then leave no mark on the Cup. Now, THAT’s obtuse! But if you want a summary: Don’t go to a World Cup with only one rookie 10, and I told ya so. That said, I feel more confident about Wales than I did about Fiji. All Eddie has to do is get us up to a 50% win rate, which coincidentally would see us hoist a cup. I’m still dreamin Mugs.
Guess
Roar Rookie
Yeah good point he's buying time. The biggest bug is him (I've just been reminded of your comment .. I intended to reply but got distracted)
Muglair
Roar Rookie
I thought it was polite to 'like' your comment before I just bagged you for being so obtuse. You could have simplified that down to "I told you all we should have taken Quade and now you can see I was right". Maybe, maybe not. A lot would have depended on whether his form was going to improve, and maybe even if Kerevi also gets back to his best. Will both he and Jordan both start against Wales? If DR stayed then I suspect Quade would have gone but we would have been lumbered with his one dimensional game plan. The core problem in Australia is depth and skill, noting also that adequate fitness levels across all SR teams is also suspect. For 25 years that is a ARU/RA problem and it won't be fixed until we go back to having the board filled with people who have spent their life in the game and whose only interest is to leave it better than when they are appointed.
ojp44
Roar Rookie
Spot on re the starter plays Jez
ScottD
Roar Guru
Yep. The youth policy is definitely a two edge sword and we have seen that for sure here.
Rugbytrylover
Roar Rookie
Ken. Your eternal love of a once, at best, great attacking player, is quite obsessive. Facts are he was great at times but also awful at times, wasn’t great in defence and as some have pointed out here, IF he was playing v Fiji, would have been targeted, just like Gordon, and I don’t think it would have been pretty. Deans, Cheika, Thorn and now Eddy have brushed Quade. If he is some genius and great team man why has that happened? Gordon is a great young kid and will bounce back. ‘Donno chiming in from the Tahs reserve bench’ seems a touch disrespectful. Eddie has backed these two and it’s a good decision. Sick and tired of hearing QC being suggested constantly as who we needed. Any bloke constantly posing on his ‘Insta’ with his shirt off and telling the world about ‘his journey’ and how he has it all together suggests that he doesn’t. You are in a ‘Bromance’!
Just Nuisance
Roar Rookie
:laughing: :laughing: ..My thoughts are Nienaber and Erasmus are maintaining the core specialist role of a nr 10 with Pollard and Libbok ..so a traditional conservative approach but true to form also going for innovation allowing huge flexibility with players interchanging roles ..But it's generally the smaller games or unimportant warm up matches they use for experimenting..Bigger matches they do tend to go with the tried and tested ....This makes so much sense.....I think they are also looking to the future where say a Grant Williams ( nr 9) can drift onto the wing ( he is quicker than most international wings) creating an overlap without compromising structure and the nr 8 say taking on the role of a scrumhalf . We even had Marco van Staden a hard core flanker playing hooker on Saturday . This was by design as apparantly past few months he has been practising lineout throws ..But I repeat the moments to be bold and have dome fun are carefully picked but not in the bigger games tho. So yes also looking to the future but unlike Jones and co they are keeping their feet firmly on the ground whilst doing so.. We have a very good coaching staff...I think you guys just don't . Yours looks like a roll the dice panel....And it is ..
jeznez
Roar Guru
I love the lack of irony on his 20 year window for the blame. What were we doing 20 years ago? Oh I remember, we let Eddie Jones coach the team and spent big on NRL outside backs!
Ben Pobjie
Expert
Yes, the pitch was always 90% fantasy, in my opinion.
graymatter
Roar Rookie
Gee thanks WB! Not sure what you mean by obsequious as I'm not at all trying to gain your favour. Further i make my argument based not soley on my opinion but also on that expressed by others with more credentials than I can lay claim to, like Sonny Bill. I also would challenge your use of wunderkind in reference to Quade Cooper. He was never that. That term might better reserved for Jorgenson? He should be in the team because he is the best five eight we have despite not being the youngest. The reason he has not been selected might be found here in this article from ten years ago: https://www.smh.com.au/sport/rugby-union/no-room-for-all-three-amigos-in-wallabies-says-eddie-jones-20130327-2gt0m.html More importantly, however, I feel Quades inclusion in the SQUAD would have been invaluable to two young developing five eight's being Noah Lolesio and Carter Gordon.
Broken Shoulder
Roar Rookie
Yep, completely agree. It’s all well and good to sit there and say “this result was a long time coming, look at how terrible our management has been for the past 20 years” but you’re failing to acknowledge your part in that result occurring. 2023 was always the focus, up until 8 weeks ago. Now “I have always had an eye for 2027” is just kicking the bucket and refusing to admit the expensive and unnecessary mistake made at the start of this year. The fact that the goal posts have been moved four years down the road is a disservice to the fans and the game here. I cannot believe he thinks we should just accept this.
Ken Catchpole's Other Leg
Roar Guru
Bloody hell!!! You probably did Ref me. No further correspondence will be entered into.
whistleblower (retired)
Roar Rookie
Sydney subbies and grade from late 70's through to 88 which was when my body rejected me. A failed comeback (Wallaby disease!! achilles significant tear but not separation) in 1990 in Taipei resulting what was then a moon boot for 6 months lol
Ken Catchpole's Other Leg
Roar Guru
Cheers JN. So England 3 NZ 3 SA 3-5 Oz 1 What could possibly go wrong?
jeznez
Roar Guru
Thanks mate hadn't seen that. I don't disagree that we are a basket case and we need structural change. I just don't trust the guy running up a 40m debt while: :rugby: paying out coaches to trash our performance in a WC year :rugby: committing to record salaries for outside backs from NRL :rugby: seeking to sell future revenue, in order to invest in a fund :rugby: admitting our systems are broken while locking in current competition structures until 2030. Hamish is not the guy to lead us out of anything. He's right, there are two decades of mismanagement but he's ignoring the nosedive triggered in the last 8 months which is seeing us plumb new depths.