Eddie Jones will avoid an awkward reunion with rival Sir Clive Woodward after taking on the role of a TV critic.
The Australian coach has signed on to appear in ITV’s coverage of the Six Nations, with four games of England’s five-match series being shown on the broadcaster. Presenters Mark Pougatch and Jill Douglas lead the coverage, with Nick Mullins and Miles Harrison providing key commentary.
Former England international Topsy Ojo will contribute his thoughts as an expert and reporter, while ITV’s seasoned reporter Gabriel Clarke will provide footage for the TV channel. Jonny Wilkinson, Lawrence Dallaglio and Ugo Monye are other former England stars recruited alongside Jones to scrutinize their performances.
But there will be no awkward rows between the 64-year-old and 69-year-old Woodward, whose relationship with ITV follows the 2023 World Cup.
The pair share a long-standing feud that dates back to the days when Jones was in charge of Australia and Woodward was in charge of England.
Woodward led England to their only Rugby World Cup victory in 2003 after a memorable win over Australia.
And that has added fuel to the fire between the pair, whose relationship has become increasingly strained in recent days, especially after Jones was sacked by England after seven years in office.
In his latest snub, Woodward claimed Jones had “lost the plot” after England thrashed the Japanese side 59-14 at Twickenham in November.
“This was not a Test match, it was a fait accompli,” he wrote in his Daily Mail column. “Eddie Jones was smiling when the final whistle blew, it was really strange. He has lost the plot in many ways and does not help the image of international rugby.”
Jones has been vocal about his dislike of his former opposition coach, claiming he was bitter because the World Cup-winning coach was not given the job as head coach of England rugby.
“He’s constantly criticizing,” Jones said during a 2023 appearance on The Bye Round podcast.
“There were some problems when we were the manager of England and Australia, but his biggest complaint was that he wanted to be the manager of rugby in England. He wanted to coach that, but he didn’t get the job.
“After the 2019 World Cup he had an internal campaign with the RFU to get that position and he did it behind my back and I thought that was quite cunning and deceptive.
“So after that, whenever he says something, I don’t value his opinion at all and I don’t like him very much, because he was so deceitful.”
It has proven to be an important tournament for England, who have not won a Six Nations since winning their third title under Jones in 2020.
Coach Steve Borthwick’s side will face Jones’ Japan twice and will face pressure to perform after the Red Rose won only five of their 12 games last year.
