Eddie Jones signs new deal to stay on as England head coach as he insists ‘circumstances are right’ to lead Owen Farrell and Co into the 2023 World Cup
- Eddie Jones has signed a new deal to stay on as England head coach until 2023
- RFU CEO Bill Sweeney had insisted he wanted the Australian to stay on last year
- Jones guided his side to the 2019 World Cup final where they lost to South Africa
Eddie Jones will stay in his role as England head coach through to the 2023 World Cup, after agreeing terms with the RFU to extend his contract.
The 60-year-old has been in charge of the national team since succeeding Stuart Lancaster at the end of 2015 and he guided his side to a place in the global final in Yokohama last November.
In the aftermath of that showpiece event – which England lost 32-12 against South Africa – RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney indicated that he wanted to retain the Australian’s services for the next four-year cycle, and that plan was confirmed by the union on Thursday.
Jones said: ‘The extension is a great honour for me, but in the current environment, it is only right to acknowledge what a difficult time the world is facing.
Eddie Jones has agreed terms on a new contract with the RFU to keep him in charge until 2023
‘We are all looking forward to a time when we can get back to playing rugby and use the sport as a force for good in bringing people back together.
‘I never thought coming here four years ago I would be doing a second four years but the circumstances are right. Obviously it is important for the team that we keep improving and my focus will be solely on that.
‘I am excited about raising the standards again. We have a great team. We set out four years ago to be the best team in the world and unfortunately we missed that by 80 minutes. Now we want to be the team that is remembered as being the greatest team the game has ever seen. It’s a big ambition but I believe we are capable of doing it.
‘We have players with an enhanced reputation, we have a team that is expected to do well, so it’s a great opportunity for us to keep moving forward.’
While this quashes speculation about Jones’ future it is understood that there was unease in some quarters at the union about the timing of an announcement, given the suspension of the rugby season, pay cuts and financial fears linked to the coronavirus pandemic.
Jones led England to the World Cup final in Japan last year, where they lost to South Africa
Bill Sweeney, RFU CEO said: ‘My thoughts and those of all of us at the RFU are with everyone impacted by COVID-19, both across the country at large but also within our own rugby union community.
‘In exceptionally difficult times, we are pleased to be sharing some good news.
‘We are delighted that Eddie will continue as head coach to run England’s campaign to take us to the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
‘His record since joining speaks for itself and he has proven why he is one of the best coaches in world rugby. The progress shown by England since 2015 has been indisputable and having fielded the youngest-ever team to play in a World Cup final, we know even more growth is possible.
‘We are all excited by what this squad can do and having Eddie leading the team is very important to us.
The Rugby Football Union’s CEO Bill Sweeney has been forced to defend the timing of the deal
‘We reached an understanding soon after returning from Japan but there were some things that we wanted to make sure worked for both sides.
‘We have announced Eddie’s contract extension a few weeks later than planned as our focus was diverted to support the English rugby community during this difficult time, we are now turning our attention to developing plans to support the rebooting of rugby and a winning England team will provide a vital role in that.’
When he took over from Lancaster, Jones insisted that he would stay in his post until 2019 and then either move on or retire.
However, last May Sportsmail exclusively revealed that he had had a change of heart and was prepared to commit to overseeing the English challenge at the 2023 World Cup, which will be held in France.
The 41-year-old Australian Jason Ryles is set to rejoing the England set up as a skills coach
Jones’s tenure has yielded some spectacular success, with a Grand Slam, another Six Nations title, a joint world-record run of 17 consecutive Test victories and a series whitewash of Australia on tour in 2016. The appearance in last year’s World Cup Final came in after a 19-7 victory over the mighty All Blacks which was widely acclaimed as England’s greatest Test performance and result.
Jones is thought to be the highest-paid coach in the world, with a salary of £750,000, although he recently agreed to take a pay cut of more than 25 per cent, amid RFU cost-cutting linked to the coronavirus outbreak and subsequent rugby shut-down.
The RFU also confirmed that 41-year-old Australian Jason Ryles – who has previously worked with Jones and England as a consultant – would join the national team as skills coach replacing Steve Borthwick who is joining Leicester Tigers.