Eddie Jones asks for 'patience' from Japan bosses
SPOTLIGHT: Japan head coach Eddie Jones has urged his side to keep the faith despite lacklustre results that have included several heavy defeats since his second stint as head coach almost a year ago.
Jones’ record in his second reign as head coach reads four wins and seven losses, which includes 40 plus point hammerings by New Zealand, France and England.
The Australian told reporters late Tuesday after returning from Japan’s tour of Europe that there was ‘no magical solution’ but said he was confident that his team would improve.
“They’re the sort of experiences this team needs,” Jones said of the tour, which ended with a 59-14 thrashing by his former team England at Twickenham on Sunday.
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“I know you’re all sitting there thinking we got beat by 50 points but they’re games we need to actually learn [from].
“The big challenge now is how quickly we can learn,” he added.
The 64-year-old Jones, who’s first stint with Japan span between 2012-2015, has blooded a host of new players including a fullback who’s still at university.
Jones said his players’ inexperience had ‘shown up at crucial times in games’ but believes Japan can become ‘the best attacking team in the world’
“There is a gap between where we are and where we need to be, and we just need to keep working,” said Jones.
“The only thing that’s going to get us there is hard work, persistence and then consistency in selection.”
Japan have signed partnership agreements with both Australia and New Zealand, menaing they will play regular Test matches against them over the years.
Jones returned to the Japan job six weeks after walking out on the Wallabies following a disastrous year-long stint in charge of the Wallabies.
He had repeatedly denied reports he was set to take the Japan post for a second time.
Jones also came under renowned scrutiny in recent weeks for his time as England head coach, with former scrumhalf Danny Care calling him a ‘tyrant’ and a ‘despot’ in his autobiography.
Jones claims he was abused by a fan at half-time on Sunday’s game in his first return to Twickenham since being sacked in 2022.
He took England to the 2019 World Cup Final where they fell short to South Africa.
