Jones on TMO call: 'We'll get some love from the game'
WATCH as England coach Eddie Jones gets philosophical about the contentious call that cost his team a match-winning try at Twickenham at the weekend.
A week after a controversial refereeing decision gifted England a one-point (12-11) over South Africa, Jones’ team was on the wrong side of an equally contentious Television Match Official ruling against New Zealand.
England surged into a 15-0 lead midway through the first half at Twickenham at the weekend, following tries from right wing Chris Ashton and New Zealand-born hooker Dylan Hartley.
But the All Blacks fought back by scoring 16 unanswered points – with fullback Damian McKenzie’s 39th-minute try supplemented by Beauden Barrett’s conversion, and two penalties either side of a drop-goal – the fly-half’s first in 71 Test matches.
Yet England, missing some 17 players through injury and suspension, thought they had won the match with four minutes left when impressive openside flank Sam Underhill crossed for a try after Courtney Lawes had charged down New Zealand replacement scrumhalf Thomas Perenara’s kick.
But French referee Jerome Garcès, after consulting South African TMO Marius Jonker, ruled Lawes had been offside and disallowed the score – effectively ending England’s bid for just an eighth win in 41 Tests against the All Blacks.
“We’re obviously devastated,” the England coach, Jones, said.
“We had opportunities to win the game, we didn’t take them, they did.
“They deserved to win the game. Full credit to New Zealand.”
As for Garcès deciding to disallow Underhill’s try, Jones said: “I don’t comment on those decisions.
“Sometimes the game loves you and sometimes the game doesn’t love you.
“You’ve got to accept if you stay in the fight long enough, the game will love you.
“And we’re prepared to stay in the fight, so we’ll get some love from the game further down the track.”
Jones insisted his side had “finished the stronger”.
With the 2019 World Cup in Japan on the horizon, Jones said: “I thought we played the final 20 [minutes] exceptionally well.
“If you look at any sort of metrics in the last 20, we won that final 20,” the Australian added.
“We’ll take enormous confidence from that.
“The All Blacks, sorry New Zealand, generally run away from teams in that area and they couldn’t break us,” said Jones.
“In fact, we finished stronger. If we’d kept going for another five minutes, we would’ve got them.
“We’re excited about where we’re going.”
