Jones prefers winning to entertaining
– Winning may not be everything in sport, but as far as England coach Eddie Jones (right) is concerned it sure beats being “entertaining”.
Rugby union is much-given to bouts of soul-searching that see its complicated rule book repeatedly tinkered with in a bid to provide a better spectacle for fans.
But a lack of spectators is unlikely to be an issue when Six Nations champions England face Scotland in Edinburgh today for the latest edition of rugby’s foundation Test – first played in 1871.
The cliche of a Calcutta Cup clash at Murrayfield is that this is always the one match where, roared on by a home crowd, the Scots can throw a spanner in the works of an English juggernaut thanks to a combination of passion and native wit.
Since Gregor Townsend, something of a mercurial playmaker in his time took over as coach last year, the Scots have indeed won plaudits for their attacking play while also enjoying some notable wins over Australia.
Scotland suffered a 34-7 defeat by Wales in their tournament opener and while they beat France 32-26 last time out, victory was only achieved after Townsend took off the faltering Finn Russell and moved Greig Laidlaw from scrumhalf to flyhalf.
By contrast England, who’ve won 24 of their 25 Tests under Jones since the Australian launched his Red Rose career with a 15-9 win at Murrayfield in 2016, have enjoyed two wins in two, seeing off Italy 46-15 in Rome before edging Wales 12-6 at Twickenham.
”What we want to know about ourselves is that we can tough it out in any situation,” said Jones, who has recalled No 8 Nathan Hughes in place of the injured Sam Simmonds in the only change to his starting XV.
Jones underlined his point by adding: “Test match rugby is about winning, it’s not about entertainment. If you want to just entertain people, you generally find you are not in the job too long.”
Dylan Hartley has been captain for all but one of England’s Tests under Jones and today will see the Northampton hooker become the country’s second-most capped player when he surpasses Jonny Wilkinson’s mark of 91 appearances. – AFP