Edwards tempted by England switch

SHAUN Edwards has admitted that he was tempted to leave his job as Wales’s defence coach after the 2015 World Cup to take on the challenge of turning England around.

England were seeking to recover from a horrendous World Cup, when Edwards’s Wales helped knock them out in the pool stage on home soil.

Stuart Lancaster departed the head coach role, with Eddie Jones ultimately taking over.

However, Edwards, who had been working under Warren Gatland for seven years at that point, admitted that the talent at England’s disposal made the job an enticing prospect.

“I fancied going there definitely after they got knocked out of the World Cup, when they didn’t make the last stage in 2015,” Edwards (circled) said on BT Sport’s Rugby Tonight.

“I looked at the Saracens players all coming through, and to me it was an absolute no-brainer that they were going to win some Six Nations competitions, in the forthcoming what I call fouryear cycles.

“And Eddie (Jones) came in and did a great job and won the first two which was no surprise to me.

“Because they had some outstanding players and they had a lot of players who’d obviously had it tough after the World Cup and there’s nothing like somebody’s a bit disgruntled, those are the type of players you want to prove themselves and they did it. Saracens also won a few trophies.”

Edwards, who has since moved on to a role with France, stayed with Wales for another four years until the end of the 2019 World Cup.

Edwards also spoke about the time he was approached by England to be a part of Andy Robinson’s coaching ticket before he took up the job with Wales.

“Yes, (there was an approach from England) in 2006, when Mr Robinson was in charge,” he added. “But it was a couple of years after my brother had tragically died in a car crash.

“I asked my mother, who passed away herself last year. I was head coach at Wasps at the time, super busy, every day, minutes taken up, and she said ‘I don’t think you’re ready’.

“And it was the right decision.”