A Wallabies player has revealed details of his “bizarre” meetings with Eddie Jones during the World Cup in France. He has also validated the coach’s defiant message to the team following his resignation, which came just 10 months into a five-year contract.
Speaking under anonymity, the athlete claimed that Jones’s conflicting signals had left many of his teammates perplexed.
Following Portugal’s match in the final week of the World Cup, there were two extremely strange meetings. The player told the Sydney Morning Herald, “They felt like farewell meetings.”
“They were private meetings.” Men would emerge and ask, “Was that a farewell? We have plans for next year, don’t we? It was weird, mate.
In January, Jones took over as head coach from Dave Rennie, and ahead of the tournament, he launched a charm offensive with Wallabies supporters.
Before the World Cup, Jones’ team lost five straight Test matches, but he never wavered in his belief that he could win crucial matches.
For the first time in a World Cup, the Wallabies did not advance past the group stage, making it an unforgettable tournament.
It was strange that Jones did not select seasoned players like Bernard Foley, Michael Hooper, and Quade Cooper. When he later said that the three-time champions weren’t “appropriate role models,” many current players took offense.
The audacious choice to rely heavily on youth backfired spectacularly, as Australia lost to Fiji and Wales, guaranteeing that the Wallabies would not advance past the group stage for the first time ever at a World Cup.
Many members of the team believed that Jones had shown Hooper, who has participated in 125 Test matches for his country, a great deal of disrespect.
The Wallabies player stated, “It [the lack of leadership remarks] was really disappointing and it didn’t sit well with the players at all.”
Eddie seemed to be attempting to hold those guys accountable for the outcomes of the previous ten years.
“At the World Cup, he experimented with a really young group on a style of football that hasn’t really been done before.”
“It hasn’t really been owned by him, and it didn’t work.”
Fans of the Wallabies were shocked when Australia lost to Fiji after being crushed 40–6 by Wales.
Fans of the Wallabies were shocked when Australia lost to Fiji after being crushed 40–6 by Wales.
The board was persuaded by Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan to replace Dave Rennie with Jones; this proved to be a disastrous move.
The board was persuaded by Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan to replace Dave Rennie with Jones; this proved to be a disastrous move.
Undoubtedly, Jones had a staunch ally in the form of troubled RA chairman Hamish McLennan.
McLennan had had enough after his team lost to Italy by one point at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in November of last year.
Even though the playing group supported the coach, he persuaded the RA board to let Rennie go, and he welcomed Jones in.
After accepting a five-year contract to become head coach, McLennan believed rugby would improve before the World Cup.
“Hamish was unstoppable,” an insider stated. “He pursued Eddie.” Going to get his man, Hamish did. He thought it would be the “magic pill.”
Before the competition, cracks started to show, with Jones privately lamenting the caliber of Australian Super Rugby teams’ performances.
Jones struggled mightily to assemble a world-class coaching team, hiring rugby league legends Brett Hodgson and Jason Ryles among others.
In an attempt to hide his tracks, the coach also stated in an interview that his long-term goal was hosting the World Cup in his home country in 2027.
When it came time for the performance, Australia’s ad-lib style of play was brutally exposed in France, and Jones was made to retract his claims that he had an interview for the head coaching job in Japan.
He has frequently stated that his future is uncertain and warned the current Wallabies playing group not to believe everything they read in a WhatsApp message.
“I’m honored to have collaborated with you.” According to reports in the media, the message said, “I haven’t signed anything [with Japan] and am going to spend the next month deciding my next move.”
After that, Jones consented to leave, leaving the Wallabies in a chaotic state.
It wouldn’t be shocking if he partnered with Japan, but as irate fans can attest, it may take years to repair the damage caused by Jones’ disastrous tenure.
