Eddie Jones has recruited Premiership referee Wayne Barnes and Matthew Carley as England desperately try to address their disciplinary woes
England, who have conceded 42 penalties in their three matches so far, face France at Twickenham this weekend.
“We need to sort out our discipline,” said England defence coach John Mitchell.
“It means greater education and awareness: we do not want to stop playing on the edge or being physical but we have to be cleverer and smarter.
“It is a feeling thing and we have had Wayne Barnes and Matthew Carley [another English Test referee] at training this week, refereeing what they saw and explaining why they made a decision.”
England are hoping the advice handed to them by Barnes and Carley can help get them back on track by defeating the French.
DID YOU KNOW? Wayne Barnes was once voted the third most-hated man in New Zealand after his failure to spot a France forward pass that helped dump the All Blacks out of the 2007 World Cup.
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3. Richie McCaw
“I’ve been on the field with some of the great captains, John Smit, Sam Warburton and Richie McCaw,” said Barnes.
“Richie always had the knack of asking the right question at the right time, sometimes it felt like I was losing a little bit of control.
“Contrary to popular belief, he didn’t talk a lot on the field. He knew the law book inside out and so when he asked a question, he often had a point.”
DID YOU KNOW? His other sporting passion is flying and he was made an honorary Squadron Leader in the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 2010