England vs Australia: Eddie Jones hits back at critics - 'Give me a break'

Reaction to the 21-8 defeat of Argentina has led Jones to question whether the English media are behind the national team

Eddie Jones launched a stern defence of his record as England head coach (Getty)

Eddie Jones hit out at England’s critics on the eve of crucial Test with Australia after facing a backlash following the win over Argentina, with the head coach issuing a defiant message: “give me a break”.

The Australian has been left in a state of bemusement as to why the 21-8 win over the Pumas has been met with so much criticism, given it was the 20th victory in his 21 matches in charge of the national team.

Since Jones replaced Stuart Lancaster, England have won back-to-back Six Nations title, a Grand Slam in 2016, a first series whitewash in Australia and recorded 18 consecutive victories to match the All Blacks’ world record run. With Jones planning to win the 2019 Rugby World Cup, he is baffled by the negative response from last weekend’s victory, and questioned whether the media were really supportive of the nation’s rugby team or would rather see them fail.

“We don’t need a bit of momentum, we need to keep getting better and that’s what we’re doing every week. I must admit I really struggle with the sort of commentary that I’m hearing about the team,” Jones said. “We’ve had 21 games and won 20 of them. We’ve had one game that people have called flat and now the whole team has stalled. Give me a break guys.

“It will come at the World Cup. You want it tomorrow – or you want us to lose tomorrow, whatever it is – I don’t know what excites you guys but it’s definitely not winning consistently.”

The point was made to Jones that teams who go on to win the World Cup tend to build a team throughout the a four-year cycle, gaining momentum as they inch towards the tournament.

“So they’ve a better winning record than 93 per cent?” Jones responded. “Of course we want to get better. By 2018 at some stage we’ll have all our players back and we’ll have them fit and then you’ll see the team roar. Until that stage we’ve just got to stall along.

“It’s like that old Vauxhall Viva that used to stall all the time. You’ve got to get out and get someone to help you push it – that’s where we’re at at the moment.”

Jones’ confusion is one clearly shared by his players, given captain Dylan Hartley expressed his belief on Thursday that winning is the only thing that mattered to him, regardless of the performance. What was perhaps most interesting from the fallout of the Argentina victory though was the difference in Jones’ behaviour during and after a match.

Jones was captured by television cameras launching a foul-mouthed outburst when flanker Sam Underhill conceded a penalty inside his own 22, shouting: “F***, how f****** stupid are we?” However, George Ford, the England fly-half that will be reunited with midfield partner Owen Farrell this weekend, insisted that he had never seen the coach angry either at half-time or after matches, and after apologising following a stern telling off from his 93-year-old mother this week, Jones was keen to look at the funny side.

Jones understands the cameras will be on him non-stop throughout the match this Saturday (Getty)

“I'm always excited mate. Didn't you see me against Argentina? What do I have to do this week? Jump from the grandstand?” Jones said, before adding: “I’m sure Sky Sports are going to be on me the whole game. I’ll try to provide some entertainment. I’ve got a nice new white English pen. If I throw that it’s going to create some great television. If the rugby doesn’t entertain you I’ll find another way to entertain you.”

Asked if he had a problem with the camera that is installed on his desk to provide a close-up of him at all times during matches, Jones answered: “It’s part of sport these days. I reckon they could get a bit closer. We’ve asked them to get a bit closer and have more shots. Don’t follow the rugby, just follow me.”