ENGLAND HEAD COACH Eddie Jones has been relieved of his duties with England today.
The Australian had only five wins from 12 Tests in 2022. This and the one win in four Autumn Series matches meant his England future had come under intense speculation over the last few weeks.
RFU CEO, Bill Sweeney claimed it was important to recognise the 'huge' job Eddie Jones had done in the role.
"It is important to recognise the huge contribution Eddie has made to English rugby, winning three Six Nations Championships, one Grand Slam and taking us to a Rugby World Cup Final," said Sweeney in a RFU statement.
"He has the highest win ratio of any previous England head coach and has helped develop the leadership skills of many players and coaches. I am grateful to Eddie for all he has done for England across many areas of the game and the professional way in which he has approached reviewing the performance of the team. He has provided the panel with astute insight and meaningful lessons that will support the team performance going forward."
Adding further on the decision to sack Jones, RFU Chair, Tom Ilube said: "The independent review panel regularly updates the board on its discussions and findings. We are fully supportive of its process and recommendations."
Following a review of the @autumnnations, Eddie Jones has been dismissed as England men’s head coach.
The RFU will conclude coach succession planning in the near future.
Read the full RFU statement here 👉 https://t.co/eyoWDAb6kd pic.twitter.com/QwiCg4vkci— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) December 6, 2022
Despite the poor form, Jones' time as England boss will be best remembered for winning three Six Nations titles in his seven years with England. This was also coupled with a Grand Slam in 2016, two series wins in Australia, an unbeaten run of 18 matches, an Autumn Nations Cup, and a Rugby World Cup final in Japan. which they lost to South Africa.
“I am pleased with much that we have achieved as an England team and I look forward to watching the team’s performance in the future,” said Eddie Jones.
“Many of the players and I will no doubt keep in touch and I wish them all well in their future careers.”
Jones sacking leaves England without a head coach nine months out from the World Cup in France.
Richard Cockerill will take over the day to day running of the men’s performance team until a successor is found.
The rumoured men to replace Jones full time are Leicester Tigers head coach Steve Borthwick, New Zealander Scott Robertson and Irishman Ronan O'Gara.
However O'Gara is rumoured to be close to agreeing a new three-year contract extension with French club side La Rochelle.
Warren Gatland was also mentioned, but the former British and Irish Lions boss opted to re-join Wales on Monday following Wayne Pivac's sacking.
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