The XV de France will once again cross paths with Eddie Jones. This time, at the helm of Japan. A return to his roots for the 64-year-old Australian technician, who shone with the “Brave Blossoms” at the 2015 World Cup in England, notably beating South Africa in what has remained as “the Brighton miracle“. The Japanese, who had set the competition alight, failed to reach the quarter-finals, despite winning all three of their matches – a first in the history of the world competition.

Subsequently, Les Bleus got to know the man, regularly coming up against England, who woke up after the fiasco of the 2015 World Cup (the first and still only host nation not to qualify for the quarter-finals). Despite questionable working methods (many players injured) and brittle communication, Eddie Jones – son of a former soldier and an American-Japanese interpreter – propelled the XV de la Rose to the final of the Japanese World Cup in 2019 (defeat by the Springboks), after two tours de force against the Wallabies in the quarter-finals and the All Blacks in the semi-finals.

Related articles
XV de France: Toulousain Saito starts for Japan, Tatafu replaces him

Then the machine jammed. With two disastrous failures: a catastrophic year in 2022 with England (5 defeats in 13 matches) which led to his dismissal and replacement by Steve Borthwick, then a totally unsuccessful return to Australia, culminating in the Wallabies’ elimination from the group phase at the last World Cup, a first for this two-time world champion nation (1991, 1999). The Wallabies’ record was a dismal two wins from nine matches. Worse, his return to Japan was seen as a real betrayal, a low blow by the Australians, who suspect that he had prepared this new project while still at the helm of the Wallabies.

Which he denied. Throwing in a jumble: “I wish Australia all the best”; “I feel bad about the results because I wanted to change things by coming back”; “I don’t feel any guilt”. in joining Japan; “the only thing I can control is what I’ve done, and I’m perfectly comfortable with that.”. Criticism was nonetheless rife, notably from former All Black Sonny Bill Williams, who spoke of “a disgrace”.. And to add: “My opinion in this whole story is that he lied… to the players, to the general public and to the Australian FA.”

When he took over the reins of Japan, Eddie Jones – a master of communication for some, a horrifying airhead for others – didn’t beat about the bush: “There’s no reason why we can’t break into the world’s top 4, he said. We need to create a new style of play that’s adventurous, matches the Japanese instinct and is offensive.” The results didn’t really follow. Apart from a prestige win over the Moari All Blacks (New Zealand’s B team), the Nipponese fell heavily to the world’s top teams, the latest being the New Zealanders.

Sébastien, creator and host of the Asia Rugby website, is not so kind to the Japanese coach. “For the moment, I’m dubious. He has certainly scouted a lot of players, going to see many League One, University and Hanazono matches. (national high school tournament) but, despite a younger team, there are very few Japanese. Many of the local players who shone in the historic victory over the Maori All Blacks – Japan’s benchmark match for me this year – are not part of this group in Europe”, he regrets.

Having succeeded on several occasions, has Eddie Jones, finalist at the 2003 and 2019 Worlds, lost his mojo? “I’d say he’s lost character and that’s showing on the team, asserts Sébastien. It’s like seeing a kindly old grandpa where, during his first term of office (2012-2015), he was ruthless with his players and really had the role of boss. I’m talking about character because, for me, that’s the most glaring lack in the Japanese right now apart from the sporting level. No leaders like the Horie, Leitch and Tamura in 2019, no warriors like the Thompson and Ono in 2015, no competitor…” Arguing that he doesn’t see “no boss up to the task and very few players with the mentality to play at international level.”

Eddie Jones’ former assistant with the Wallabies, Frenchman Pierre-Henry Broncan, now manager of Brive, is less alarmist. Eddie Jones’ shortcomings? “In rugby, he doesn’t have any, he told AFP. As much as he can put a lot of pressure on the staff, he’s also very good with the players. But not everyone can work with him because he’s so demanding. He puts a lot of pressure on the content, on the detail. As far as I’m concerned, it’s been a pleasure working with him.” It now remains to be seen whether Eddie Jones’ methods and discourse will succeed in transcending the Japanese a second time.