Jones: I want Farrell to rule by fear
EDDIE Jones wants Owen Farrell to rule England with an iron fist, saying the new captain can govern by fear in South Africa.
The 26-year-old was picked as the tour skipper for the three Tests against the Springboks – his first trip as leader – in the absence of concussion victim Dylan Hartley.
Jones talked about four great captains he has worked with over his coaching career: Australian World Cup winners John Eales and George Gregan, Springbok legend John Smit, who won the 2007 tournament, and Japan skipper Michael Leitch.
And it is his former scrum-half Gregan who Jones thinks Farrell can emulate by making his teammates scared to let him down.
“Gregan was fantastic,” Jones told reporters. “I have never seen a stronger winner than him. He demanded stuff from the team and they were frightened not to give it to him.
“That is close to the mark. Owen will put his own stamp on the team and we want him to do that. We obviously don’t want him to lose some of the great work Dylan has done, but Owen can bring his own flavour.”
Jones listed Smit and Japan’s Michael Leitch as the best captains he had worked with alongside Gregan.
“You don’t expect a captain immediately to be this all-conquering figure. It takes time, it takes effort and it takes patience,” Jones added.
“Owen has got the job for South Africa so he has five weeks to work through, find his own style, influence the team and we will see how he goes.”
The England boss added: “That is close to the mark so we need to find people who can work off the field to help him. He is a completely different character from Dylan. He has a different cultural background. Dylan is from Rotorua, Owen is from Wigan. They think of things differently, they look at things differently.
“Owen will put his own stamp on the team and we want him to do that. We obviously don’t want him to lose some of the great work Dylan’s done.
“We always had evolution in mind. We were never sure how long Dylan would last as captain and we are still not sure if he will come back. You have a process where you see who comes through and certainly Owen has come through.”
England, coming off the back of three successive Six Nations defeats, will play South Africa in Johannesburg (June 9), Bloemfontein (June 16) and Cape Town (June 23). – Daily Mail & Reuters