Felix Jones has let Steve Borthwick and English rugby down. Huge time.
The same goes for Aled Walters, but to a lesser extent. Their departure from the national line-up in recent weeks has derailed the team’s progress for a run of games in the autumn.
Tom Tombleson, a fitness coach, has also left. These losses are very significant and the silence from the RFU is deafening, more than seven days after we first heard that Jones had jumped ship.
The situation does not put anyone in a positive light.
Jones came to England with an impressive record, having won two consecutive World Cups with South Africa.
Felix Jones has disappointed Steve Borthwick and English rugby with his departure from the starting XI
The departure of fellow coach Aled Walters has also had a major impact on the training camp and set back the team’s progress
There’s no doubt that Jones’ arrival felt like a coup for Borthwick, but at the time I felt uncomfortable with the amount of fuss being made
There is no doubt that his signing felt like a coup for Borthwick, but at the time I felt uncomfortable with the amount of fuss made about his appointment. Borthwick continued to praise Jones’ abilities at every opportunity, but ultimately their marriage ended in a nasty divorce.
Jones and Walters have shown that their appointments were a big mistake. If you don’t want to coach England – as these two have clearly shown – then the message needs to be clear. On your bikes, Felix and Aled. Thanks and goodbye.
This is no time for sentimentality. Both Jones and Walters are highly regarded and have achieved great things in rugby. And while that is easy to say in hindsight, I am not sure they should have been in the RFU in the first place.
England is full of young, talented coaches. It’s hard to explain, but I don’t think being an overseas coach for England is the same as for other countries.
To be honest, England is not that popular in the rugby world.
To be clear, this is not about individuals. And of course these are professional coaches and this is the modern game. But I am not surprised by what happened.
There are some great people in English rugby who could have done as well as Walters and Jones.
Many of them could have done even better with the priceless qualities of patriotism and loyalty in their DNA. And this is where Borthwick, as head coach, now has a great opportunity.
Tom Tombleson, a fitness coach, has also moved on, and all these losses are very significant
Both Jones and Walters (left) are highly regarded and have achieved great things in rugby
When I was England manager my team remained consistent, with Andy Robinson (right) as my regular partner
He needs to turn the current farce into something positive and put together a coaching team that will re-energize his players. But first he needs to address the current situation, which is far from ideal.
I have to say, even in my worst nightmare I couldn’t imagine this happening to my group.
When I was head coach of England, my backroom team remained consistent. Andy Robinson, Phil Larder, Dave Alred, Phil Keith-Roach, Simon Hardy and Dave Reddin were my long-term partners. I simply could not have imagined that any of them would come to me during the time we worked together and tell me they were quitting.
Sometimes we had disagreements. That’s normal, because in elite sports there are many different opinions and ideas. The stakes are high and the adrenaline can get out of hand.
Elite coaches are just as driven, skilled, competitive and opinionated as players, so managing them is just as challenging. In some ways it is even harder, because unlike international players, they can leave at any time and join the opposition.
That is exactly what happened with Walters moving to Ireland. If Andy, Phil or others had left when I was there I am sure my players would not have been happy. Far from it!
People like Martin Johnson and Lawrence Dallaglio would undoubtedly have looked at me and asked, ‘What’s going on here?’ And they would have been right.
The current England players lack consistency in backroom staff, a legacy of Eddie Jones’ revolving door of coaches, which was a farce.
Big beasts in the dressing room like Martin Johnson would have been surprised by major changes in the backroom
England’s current players lack consistency in personnel, a move that harks back to Eddie Jones’ revolving door of coaches
When assistant coaches leave, the man at the top has questions to answer. That is now the case for Borthwick, and that is why he needs to hold a press conference as soon as possible to explain what is going on. Borthwick needs to tell it like it is, without beating around the bush.
If Borthwick himself has made a mistake in appointing Jones and Walters, then he should simply admit it. That will kill the story and we can all move on.
As a coach it is about regaining the initiative. The RFU has yet to officially comment on Jones’ departure, which is telling. They are quick to do so on what they see as positive news, but too often they remain in the shadows when it comes to addressing controversial issues.
Borthwick must be feeling very disappointed and doubting his judgement, as Jones only joined after last year’s World Cup. Borthwick needs to put all these emotions aside, acknowledge that these things happen and move on quickly.
Just eight games and seven months after joining, Jones is gone. What is particularly reprehensible is that he has left England without, it seems, another job. This is what Borthwick needs to deal with.
The longer he remains silent, the longer the debate will rage.
Is Borthwick’s environment too intense? Not ambitious enough? Does he have the skills to work with big personalities? Is a high turnover of backroom staff – as we saw under his predecessor – something that English rugby fans are likely to continue to expect?
At this time, we do not yet know the answers to those questions.
Jones had shown promising signs of success with the blitz style of defense, but honestly, that doesn’t worry the best teams in the world too much.
Former England Sevens captain and Olympic medallist Tom Mitchell is someone worth keeping an eye on
Borthwick’s dream ticket would be to finally get Shaun Edwards into the England dressing room
However, it is an approach that can be further developed by whoever replaces him.
This is a great opportunity to be creative. Tom Mitchell, the former England Sevens captain and Olympic medallist, is someone I have come to know well. He is a fantastic young coach who would bring new ideas.
Borthwick’s dream ticket would be to finally get Shaun Edwards into the England dressing room where he belongs and should have been for some time. The same goes for Dave on the fitness front.
The RFU should kick his door down. Would Walters and Jones have left England if it were their country of birth? Only they can answer that, but I suspect not.
Both men are now condemned to England’s rugby past and that is where they must remain.