Sir Clive Woodward was furious at what he saw as England were thumped by the Barbarians at Twickenham on Sunday.
Marcus Smith’s astute open-play kicking was a bright note for the hosts but the 14-man Baa-Baas controlled most of the game as they romped to a 52-21 win .
In a furious column he wrote: “I have given myself 48 hours to reflect on the Barbarians game to ensure I was not over-reacting, but England really should have taken the law into their own hands when the visitors turned the match into a farce.
“I was disappointed with George Kruis for allowing it to happen, especially his antics around his backheel conversion. I cannot imagine Phil Bennett laughing at that.
“To concede 50 points against an opponent with 14 men was more than poor, but to allow the showboating said much about the team. Something had to happen and it did not.
“A senior rugby figure — a director of rugby — to sort situations out like this is long overdue. Giving Eddie Jones the keys to Twickenham is holding England back now in so many ways.
“Some of the rhetoric Jones continually comes out with is just plain daft and at this level it doesn’t help. I saw some of his quotes about the squad for the upcoming tour of Australia and that it was a ‘good mixture of youth and experience’.
“It should be absolutely nothing about that whatsoever. It’s about picking your best starting XV, but under Jones we have lost that.”
Read Woodward’s full column here.
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5 rugby players who are definitely punching – including Mike Tindall
Here are some of the most famous players who were as successful off the field as they have been on it.
#1. Mike Tindall – Zara
There is nowhere else we could start. People were baffled when the World Cup-winning England centre, who at that point had a nose pointing right, started dating royalty in Zara Phillips, the daughter of Anne, Princess Royal. She is 21st in line of succession to the British throne.
Zara, who won BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 2006, has three children with the former rugger. If we’re honest, Tindall has aged like a fine wine, but he is definitely still punching above is weight.
