Jones laughs off ‘Uncle Eddie’ dig
WALES captain Alun Wyn Jones is ready “for a chat with Uncle Eddie” after laughing off the England boss’ outspoken preTwickenham comments.
Eddie Jones fanned the flames ahead of today’s NatWest 6 Nations showdown with his perception of the Welsh skipper’s conduct towards referee Pascal Gauzere in Cardiff last Saturday when Wales beat Scotland.
England’s head coach objected to the way in which Alun Wyn Jones stood in front of Finn Russell to prevent the Scotland fly-half from converting Peter Horne’s late try while the television match official reviewed the score.
Eddie Jones accused the 114-time-capped lock of failing to “respect the integrity of the referee” and claimed that Saturday’s ref Jerome Garces “won’t let Alun Wyn Jones intimidate him”.
It is understood that England Rugby made an enquiry – rather than any official complaint – to World Rugby, and the sport’s governing body is happy with the way Gauzere and the TMO dealt with things.
Reacting to Jones’ comments, Alun Wyn Jones said: “It was more important that World Rugby, when they were asked for clarification, came back and essentially said that they saw nothing untoward with what happened.
“More importantly, Pascal at the time had no issue or no issue after the game.
“I am very grateful that Eddie has flagged that up with World Rugby. I’ll keep doing what I’m doing and keep within the spirit of the game.”
Asked if Jones’ comments suggested he might be worried about Wales, Alun Wyn Jones added: “I don’t know. You can choose your friends, but you can’t choose your family. I’ll have to have a chat with Uncle Eddie after the game.”