‘Sacking Eddie can supercharge us’
FOLLOW SPRINGBOK MODEL SAYS DAWSON
MATT DAWSON has urged England to follow South Africa’s example and jettison Eddie Jones to “supercharge” their World Cup campaign.
The RFU are conducting a debrief into England’s woeful Six Nations performance, with Jones’s future at its heart.
But 2003 World Cup-winner Dawson believes copying South Africa’s strategy as they build towards the 2023 World Cup would be the most “progressive” step for England.
The Springboks parachuted Rassie Erasmus in as coach in March 2018 after a string of bad results, then charged to victory in Japan a year-and-a-half later.
And Dawson believes such a shake-up could see England similarly revitalised after five-and-a-half years with Jones in charge. “I’m not sure even Eddie would see it [his removal] as the nuclear option,” said the former scrum-half.
“By his own admission a fouryear cycle is probably right for a coach so by now you should be bringing other coaches through.
“He should have a plan. We all know what a new manager or coach can do for a team and it could be an amazing time. It could give England a supercharge like Rassie Erasmus did for South Africa 18 months out from their World Cup win in 2019.”
England’s fifth-placed finish in this year’s Six Nations is their joint-worst performance since
Italy joined the competition. And Dawson, helping to promote a link-up between Carlsberg and WWF to restock the UK coastline’s seagrass bed, feels change should not stop at the head coach.
He said: “One thing I find difficult is the inconsistency of how England play. Why can’t they produce back-to-back performances at a high level?
“I find it weird that after six years they are not banging out performance after performance.
“There are young players everywhere who could be in with a shout to improve things but while Eddie has been ticking boxes around apprenticeships and the like they are not making the team.
“Inside-centre is an issue in that we don’t have a star player and we haven’t got a star fly-half either. Dan Robson, Joe Simmonds, Marcus Smith and Harry Randall are a few who could be in with a shout.” ● Matt Dawson is working with Carlsberg and WWF on their campaign to create a better tomorrow for our planet through simple everyday actions.