Eddie Jones is showing signs of tension as South Africa expose England’s weak foundations

Hair raising | Faf de Klerk leads South Africa’s fightback at Ellis Park
AFP/Getty Images
Jonathan Hunn11 June 2018

England return to their Durban camp under mounting pressure as they pick through the ruins of a 42-39 First Test defeat by South Africa that continues to raise concerns over their ability to mount a meaningful World Cup challenge.

Eddie Jones’s methods are being scrutinised once more, this time for an approach to playing at altitude that the Springboks viewed as a vulnerability to be exploited at Ellis Park.

And the Australian who needs a win to ease criticism of his regime is showing signs of tension after disputing the length of England’s five-match losing run by refusing to regard last month’s non-cap international against the Barbarians as part of the record.

“We’ve not had five defeats. We have lost four Test matches,” he said.

When pressed on the sequence, head coach Jones replied: “I’m not going to answer that question because I will lose my patience.”

Jones had raised the stakes for a series that continues in Bloemfontein by billing the Johannesburg opener as the beginning of England’s march to the World Cup, adding that to be successful at the global showpiece “you’ve got to win games like South Africa at Ellis Park”.

Instead what followed was a damaging setback as a breath-taking 21-point lead built inside 18 minutes through tries from Mike Brown, Elliot Daly and Owen Farrell crumbled before a Springbok reply orchestrated by the outstanding Faf de Klerk and aided by yet more indiscipline in the shape of a penalty count numbering 12.

Jones chooses to focus on the explosive opening quarter rather than 50 minutes of South African dominance that followed but will surely be alarmed by his players’ inability to alter the course of the game.

“I thought we handled it well. Our start was outstanding. I have never seen a team do that at Ellis Park,” Jones said.

“All the teams I have brought here, the first 20 minutes they usually get blown away. We did the exact opposite. So I’m absolutely pleased with that but I’m not pleased with the individual errors that followed.”

In Pictures | South Africa vs England | 09/06/2018

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De Klerk revealed that England’s decision to base themselves at sea level even though the first two Tests were at altitude was pinpointed by South Africa as weakness to be exploited but Jones is adamant that performance rather than acclimatisation to the oxygen density of the air on the Highveld decides results.

Joe Launchbury is expected back for the Second Test at Free State Stadium having sat out the opener with a calf problem but 20-year-old lock Nick Isiekwe is likely to play no further part in the series having been subjected to a tactical substitution three minutes before half-time.

Elliot Daly produced his worst performance in an England jersey at full-back so may be shifted to the wing and Chris Robshaw is off the pace, possibly creating a space in the back row for Brad Shields.

Sir Clive Woodward yesterday described 2018 as a “horror show” for England and the nightmare will last until at least November if captain Owen Farrell is unable to inspire a change in fortunes.

“We can’t sulk, we can’t feel sorry for ourselves. We’ve probably got to get after something simple, something clear that we can go after during the week and fix up,” Farrell said.

“We’ve got a lot of learning to do over the next couple of days and then we’ve got to get excited again. It was a great occasion on Saturday and the game was exciting.

“The main thing is belief. Not just saying we believe, not just chatting about it but having a proper deep belief that we can go and win this Test series. From speaking to the boys and seeing how we’ve held our heads up after this game I don’t think that will be an issue.”

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