COMMENT: There is no winner in the feud between Eddie Jones and Danny Cipriani as it is such a shame too see the Rugby World Cup countdown overshadowed by the war of words
- There is no winner in the angry Eddie Jones and Danny Cipriani feud ahead
- It’s such a shame to see the Rugby World Cup countdown overshadowed
- The fact that Cipriani won only 16 caps for England is a sporting travesty
- Latest Rugby World Cup 2023 news, including fixtures, live scores and results
What a shame that this dispute is eclipsing the countdown to the World Cup. England’s build-up to the tournament has been so demoralising that a sideshow between a former head coach and an ex-fly-half has become the main event.
It is also a desperate pity that there should be an ugly feud between Eddie Jones and Danny Cipriani. This is a man who took the national team to the brink of global glory four years ago, after Grand Slams, tour successes and a world-record run of Test victories, and another man who should have graced one of these showpiece events.
The fact that Cipriani won only 16 caps for England is a sporting travesty.
The 35-year-old was an instinctive genius of a playmaker, for so many years, at Wasps and Melbourne Rebels, Sale, Wasps again and Gloucester, before a low-key season at Bath. In his pomp, there wasn’t an Englishman like him.
In his first Test start in 2008, he called the tune as Ireland were torn to shreds at Twickenham. What the current England side would do for such off-the-cuff, creative class.
It is a desperate pity that there should be an ugly feud between Eddie Jones and Danny Cipriani
Jones took the national team to the brink of global glory four years ago, after Grand Slams, tour successes and a world-record run of Test victories
Cipriani’s talent endured, to the extent that he won a rare Double when he was named Premiership Player of the Year and Players’ Player of the Year in 2019.
But, somehow inevitably, he missed the cut for the World Cup that year, as he had done in 2015.
Cipriani’s quest for England recognition was an all-consuming one for so long.
He felt he belonged at that level and he had a point. But while there were various errors of judgment in his off-field behaviour along the way, there was also a sense that his face didn’t fit.
On Monday , Owen Farrell was asked to respond to a claim in Cipriani’s autobiography that he was at the heart of a ‘mafia’ within the England set-up.
He carefully dismissed the question, but there was unquestionably a sense in 2018 that others didn’t want Cipriani involved when he started for England against South Africa in Cape Town and delivered the cross-kick which produced a match-defining try for Jonny May in a 25-10 victory.
Body language experts would have had a field day in that match. There was no evident warmth between the playmakers standing side-by-side; Cipriani and Farrell.
As for Jones, he is an abrasive and antagonistic character, no question. He has been tough and ruthless with many players in many countries over many years.
The fact that Cipriani won only 16 caps for England is a sporting travesty
He can be engaging company but also volatile and fiercely confrontational.
Your correspondent has to declare an interest, having enjoyed a strong working relationship with both men, who have been columnists for this newspaper.
Both have flaws and also many qualities.
Whatever went on at a dinner table seven years ago, rugby needs characters and visionaries.
So here’s hoping Jones transforms the Wallabies with typical intensity and purpose, and great care for his players — and that Cipriani’s vast knowledge and rare tactical and technical insight can be harnessed in coaching and mentoring roles in the future.
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