England on alert to avoid falling for Jones wind-ups again

Head coach cites namesake as tormentor-in-chief for Wales Farrell says whole team must deal with Cardiff mind games

Eddie Jones has warned his England squad to beware Alun Wyn Jones’s wind-up tactics in tomorrow’s pivotal Guinness Six Nations Championship clash.

Wales captain Jones has appeared at the centre of several flashpoints in recent matches against England. In the last Six Nations meeting in Cardiff, he successfully got under the skin of prop Kyle Sinckler, forcing his substitution, while last year at Twickenham Joe Marler grabbed Jones’s genitals, which resulted in a 10-week ban.

The England head coach makes two changes for the trip to Cardiff from the starting XV who defeated Italy 41-18 in round two of the Six Nations, as hooker Jamie George and flanker Mark Wilson return.

Even without the highly charged atmosphere created by 74,500 supporters at the Principality Stadium, Jones is expecting no less needle, with Wales gunning for a Triple Crown and England needing to keep their title defence alive. And he has told his squad they must keep their cool whatever provocation comes their way, with Alun Wyn Jones acting as antagonist-in-chief. “It’s his 146th Test, so he knows what he’s doing,” Jones said. “He’s an experienced campaigner who has a good relationship with the referees.

“At times, he has targeted players in our team. We’ve spoken about him, and we understand what he’ll be trying to do. It’s just about making sure we maintain our composure and our control. We are evolving into a more street-smart team, but the game is about pressure situations. Whilst we all like to think we can handle every pressure situation, we don’t and that is the great thing about rugby. I am sure Alun Wyn Jones is going to be looking for those situations, and we’re going to have to deal with them.

“They’re tight contests that go down to the wire, down to the last moment. We won there in 2017 basically on the bell. And we had to win on the bell at Twickenham last year, so we’re expecting a similar sort of game. It’s the sort of game you’ve got to win not once, but maybe two or three times. Wales will keep coming and keep coming. It will be a great contest.”

In contrast to Alun Wyn Jones, England captain Owen Farrell has

struggled at times to build a courteous rapport with referees, notably in the 11-6 defeat by Scotland. However, Jones says that he has no doubts over Farrell’s communication skills with officials. “Our feedback from the referees on Owen is only positive,” Jones said. “Unless they are telling lies, they are quite happy with his approach. George Gregan [Jones’s Australia captain] used to get that criticism, too … in the face and too aggressive. They find a way and develop into good captains.”

Farrell never strays too far from confrontations and has been a target for other teams’ goading in the past. He says England must stick together to avoid losing their heads as Sinckler did two years ago in Cardiff. “It’s off-the-ball-type stuff, I guess, but the most important thing for us is what happens in between the whistle when the game’s on,” Farrell said. “We’d always hope we are closer and more tight-knit. To deal with it as a whole, rather than as individuals, is probably the most important thing for us. It’s more about us looking after each other as a group.”

Courtney Lawes suffered a pectoral muscle injury in training on Wednesday afternoon and will be replaced by Wilson, who has the remit to be England’s “work rate player” in Cardiff. “A lot of good defence, a lot of good clean-outs, he will be a bit of a ‘glue’ player for the team,” the England coach said.

George swaps places with Exeter hooker Luke Cowan-dickie. Uncapped Leicester flanker George Martin could also make his debut off the bench as Jones retains a 6-2 split.

Wales head coach Wayne Pivac, meanwhile, hands George North his 100th cap at outside centre as one of five changes from the side who defeated Scotland. Scrum-half Kieran Hardy, wing Josh Adams and flanker Josh Navidi all come in, while Jonathan Davies starts at inside rather than outside centre.

“He’s got the experience,” Pivac said of Davies. “Don’t forget, he started his Test career at 12. So, it’s not foreign to him. Look, we all know that when Jonathan puts on the Welsh jersey, he doesn’t let his country down.”