England’s World Cup plans have been thrown into further disarray by the departure of another senior member of Eddie Jones’s management team.
It’s been widely reported tonight that Dean Benton is due to depart his position as the head of sports science, leaving Jones with another sizeable hole in his backroom staff to fill.
The RFU is already in the process of appointing a new defence coach after the departure of Paul Gustard earlier this year, while England have been operating without a full-time attack coach since Rory Teague left his role last year.
Benton came with considerable pedigree, having worked with the Wallabies in the buildup to the 2015 World Cup, but he left just 11 weeks before that tournament and was recruited by his fellow Australian Jones in 2016.