EDWARDS SHAUN ON…
...Rob Howley’s potential return to the game after his ban
I’m totally pleased. I keep coming back to Dean Richards, who was an absolute legend as a player and manager, and who has come back from Bloodgate and been rehabilitated, and credit to Newcastle for giving him that opportunity. I think Rob can do the same. They both made mistakes and paid the price, but now it should be forgive and forget.
Missed RFU deals and his desire to coach England
If the RFU want to come and talk to me at some stage that’s fine, but I’m not chasing them. When they offered me a coaching job in 2006 it was two and a half years after my younger brother Billy-Joe’s death in a car crash, and I didn’t need the time on my hands that you sometimes get in international rugby.
The best way for me was to keep busy after he passed away, and that meant the constant involvement in coaching that I had week-to-week at Wasps.
Starting the season again, and the need for another pre-season
Some players come back from longterm injuries without having an extensive pre-season, so there are questions about why it’s necessary. But, it’s probably a medical thing, and I don’t want to upset them.
The law he would most like World Rugby to address
The double-latching before contact when a team gets near the try line after 22 phases. The great thing about Rugby Union is that there’s a scrum contest, a line-out contest, and a breakdown contest – but the breakdown contest does not exist when you get double-latching, which is when the ball carrier and a support player bind and the two men hit the ground before the contact. Have a clear rule change which says they can only go to ground after contact.
Adjusting to life in France and lockdown
The biggest adjustment is obviously getting your family over. We live next door to Richard Hunwicks, who is the head of performance for the Catalan Dragons. We’ve had some interesting conversations, and there are a few players from both codes living nearby. The girls, Eedie and Kitty, are five and two, and the older one has just started school this week. Obviously, there will be adjustments, but the plan is for the youngsters to become bilingual.
The lockdown has been terrible given the number of deaths, but for me it has been about trying to be a good dad, doing a bit more reading, and trying to use it in a positive way.