CLUBS TO SKIP CLEAR-THE-AIR MEETING WITH EDDIE
TENSIONS arising from last week’s damaging England training camp are in danger of lingering, as several club directors of rugby are set to miss a meeting with Eddie Jones today. A gathering arranged by Premiership Rugby at Heathrow had presented an early opportunity for clear-the-air talks, after the national squad’s camp in Brighton last week led to two serious injuries. Wasps flanker Sam Jones suffered a broken leg and ankle injury during a judo drill, while Anthony Watson, the Bath wing, broke his jaw in regular training. In addition, Exeter were angered by Jack Nowell’s leg injury and how it was handled by England. It is understood that Eddie Jones was invited to today’s meeting back in August, but while some club coaches are keen to engage in faceto-face discussions, several will be absent during a busy European week. Leicester’s director of rugby, Richard Cockerill, said: ‘I’m not going, but I haven’t got an issue. I’ve been involved with it for the last 10 years. I’ve had these arguments with every England coach. ‘There’s no point having the argument. The set-up there has been really positive, they’re well coached, the conditioning is good, the medical is good — people are going to get injured. The judo one — it’s just a freak accident.’ While the meeting is a routine quarterly event, with several items on the agenda, the club v country unrest generated by England’s recent training camp will be a priority. Dai Young, whose Wasps side will be without the in-form Sam Jones for around five months, is attending and expressed surprise that others are not. ‘If you’re asked to go to a meeting and the consensus is we should be asked about things, and then you don’t go, you cannot complain,’ he said. ‘We’re moaning that we do not get consulted and then there’s a meeting and you don’t go. I think it is very important for me to go so I can listen to what they have to say. We all have to work together — it is not a case of a crisis meeting — it is understanding each other’s issues.’ His sentiments were echoed by Mark McCall of Saracens, who added: ‘I’ll be there. My issue was with the timing of the camp. It’s up to Eddie what happens in the camp because that’s what is in the agreement. ‘We can’t blame England for everything. They’re entitled to do what they think is right in these camps. It’s good to have a face-to-face meeting. This shouldn’t be a fight. The best thing is for it to be a co-operative relationship.’