The Red Baron
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Eddie Jones picks out his biggest mistake as England head coach
Eddie Jones has identified his continued selection of Saracens players in 2021 as the biggest mistake he made as England head coach.punditarena.com
The 62-year-old said if he could change one thing about his approach it would be his selection criteria, which saw many in-form Premiership players overlooked during his time in charge.
“We always make mistakes. If today I could go back in time, maybe I would change some of my selection criteria,” he said
“2021 was a very bad year for us. Saracens had just been demoted to the second division. As you probably know, the XV of England was then mainly formed by players from the Sarries.”
Jones continued to back the majority of his 2019 World Cup final side, who went on to capture the 2020 Six Nations, but the wheels started to come off during 2021.
“The problem is that their level has dropped considerably, in the second division and that the performances of our national team immediately suffered from it,” he said.
“So I should have changed my tune, that year. And I regret it, this is the mistake I made.”
England finished fifth in the 2021 Six Nations for the first time since 2018, which forced a reset that saw many stars dropped by the November internationals.
A new core of young players were brought in like Marcus Smith and Freddie Steward but the side failed to click in 2022 with just five wins from the 12 Tests in the calendar year.
Jones was criticized for his reluctance to blood form players at times during his tenure, particularly in 2021 when England finished second to last in the Six Nations.