DON’T PANIC, ENGLAND
MY MESSAGE to England fans would be that you’re not too far away. Eddie Jones is copping a lot of heat after a few defeats in a row but things can soon change. Trust me, I’ve been there. When I was coaching Wales, we lost to Australia 11 times in a row, by pretty much a score each time. Everyone was talking about mentality and hoodoos. Come 2019, the year of the World Cup, we beat them twice when it mattered. That’s how quickly things can change. England aren’t losing Test matches by 30 or 40 points. They’ve lost by relatively small margins, discounting the Baa-Baas game. When I joined France, we were winning and losing big matches by one score. If you’re within that margin, you’re on the edge of turning defeats into victories. It sounds simple but the key to winning in international rugby is keeping the opposition out of your 22. You need to stop giving Australia penalties because that’s when they kick for the lineout and launch an attack.