In plotting to beat England in a Rugby World Cup final after narrowly failing in 2003, Eddie Jones says he's not out for revenge.
Jones was the coach of Australia four years ago when, as defending champions and tournament hosts, they lost the final to England in extra time on Jonny Wilkinson's drop goal. He was fired as Wallabies coach after a miserable 2005, and accepted an invitation from South Africa coach Jake White to be a technical adviser for the Springboks only three months ago.
Jones was branded a traitor in Australia and South Africa's administrators wouldn't let him wear a Springboks team blazer, but now he and White couldn't be happier with their alliance going into Saturday's final at Stade de France.
Jones was the only member of the Springboks squad put in front of the world's press on Tuesday, and he played down talk of revenge for 2003.
"England were probably the better side and deserved to win," he said. "This year South Africa is potentially the best team, and if we play well we'll get the result we want. Gee, it won't make up for 2003 but I might throw that silver medal away."
Grateful to White for the chance to work at international level again after a failed season as the Queensland Reds Super 14 coach, Jones didn't think he'd added much to the coaching team of White and assistants Gert Smal and Allister Coetzee. If anything, he believed he'd been a useful ear for White, knowing the stresses he was under as coach.
White, however, regarded Jones as more valuable than that, and has been full of praise for his former rival, even linking Australia's World Cup failure with letting him go.
"Eddie Jones, he's one of the most clever men of rugby," White said. "He's a student of the game, he's got an unbelievable work ethic, you can see what sort of added value he has."
"I know what Eddie means to us because he's been in the same final. He coached against us, he coached against England, he knows most of the players," White said.
White said being able to talk issues over with Jones and get his feedback was invaluable.
"It's not just what he does on the field, or tactically or technically what he adds," he said. "He can be a real sounding board for everybody that's involved in this team, from the captain right through to the medical staff."
While Jones was sure South Africa will win its second World Cup, his confidence was scarred by the presence of Wilkinson, whose return from a pre-tournament ankle injury has coincided with England's unimaginable turnaround in the last month.
"Jonny's still there, so he's a bit of a worry," Jones said.
"He's a different sort of player, not as dominant as he was in 2003, but he gives England enormous confidence. You can see guys play better around him when he's out there because he has won a World Cup, he still kicks reasonably well, he still kicks a field goal here and there, and he's tough," Jones said.
Jones said Wilkinson was also a very good tackler, as he proved against Australia and France, which forced opposition attacks to push wider looking for gaps.
Inter on Sunday were given a letoff when they snatched a late 1-1 derby draw with AC Milan, while league leaders SSC Napoli were held by a late goal at AS Roma. Reigning champions Inter remain three points behind Napoli, who looked to be heading five clear as they led in Rome until Angelino volleyed in a stunning leveler in the first minute of stoppage-time. Angelino’s strike gave even more significance to Stefan de Vrij’s last-gasp equalizer at the San Siro. The defender forced home Nicola Zalewski’s knockdown just as it looked like Tijjani Reijnders’ opener would be enough for Milan. “I can
Santiago Castro on Tuesday had an immediate impact off the bench as he scored the goal to send Bologna into the Coppa Italia semi-finals for the first time in 26 years. Bologna won 1-0 against last year’s runners-up, Atalanta BC, and are to play either holders Juventus or Empoli in the final four. Juventus are to host Empoli in their quarter-final on Feb. 26. The last time Bologna reached the semi-finals was in 1999, when they lost 4-2 to ACF Fiorentina. There were chances for both sides in a high-tempo match in Bergamo, but it was Bologna who broke the deadlock 10 minutes from
After nearly six years away from the NBA, New Taipei Kings player Jeremy Lin (林書豪) is set to participate in the 2025 NBA All-Star Weekend’s Rising Stars mini-tournament as the coach of Team G League. The NBA announced Monday (U.S. time) that the Taiwanese-American player will join a trio of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famers – Tim Hardaway Sr., Chris Mullin, and Mitch Richmond – as honorary coaches for four teams featuring 28 rising talents. "See you soon in the Bay," Lin wrote in an Instagram story sharing the news. As the All-Star Weekend will take place at
The former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani on Thursday was sentenced to nearly five years in prison for bank and tax fraud after he stole nearly US$17 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers player’s bank account. Ippei Mizuhara, who was supposed to bridge the gap between the Japanese athlete and his English-speaking teammates and fans, was sentenced in federal court in Santa Ana to four years and nine months after pleading guilty last year. He was ordered to pay US$18 million in restitution, with nearly US$17 million going to Ohtani and the remainder to the US Internal Revenue Service. He was