Eddie is backing Hartley to be 2019 skipper
EDDIE JONES has given his strongest indication yet that Dylan Hartley could continue as England captain through to the World Cup in 2019 following his ‘outstanding’ leadership in the 30-6 win over Australia. The head coach previously referred to the Northampton hooker as his ‘foundation’ skipper, suggesting his position would be reassessed, with a view to a ‘tournament captain’ being installed to lead the team for two years prior to the tournament in Japan. However, in the aftermath of England’s thrashing of the Wallabies at Twickenham on Saturday, Jones appeared to endorse Hartley’s chances of staying on to be his World Cup captain. ‘Dylan’s contribution was outstanding,’ said the Australian, about a man who has started all 23 matches under his regime as skipper — and who won four turnovers in the second fixture of the autumn campaign, more than any other player on the field. ‘His captaincy was first class. He’s moving from being a good
captain to being an even better captain. ‘He’s been around a bit. He’s seen the bottom of the trough and he’s now surfing at the top of the crest. He appreciates relationships, he appreciates the opportunity of what at he’s doing at the moment and he’s only going to grow as captain.’ On a day when the hosts benefited from a series of close calls by Kiwi referee Ben O’Keeffe,O Jones added:add ‘Dylan managesm the refereer well and manages the team well. He’s got a good demeanour abouta him with ththe referee. It’s so importantimp for the captaincapta to have a good relrelationship with the referee. ‘We play a game that has a contest in every component so your ability to communicate effectively with the referee is so important and he does that brilliantly.’ Having identified Hartley’s capacity to improve, Jones was also asked to assess the leadership shown by Owen Farrell, who took over the role when the skipper departed just before the hour. Jones said: ‘He’s a youngster in terms of captaincy. The more experience he gets, the better he’ll be.’