Former coach Sir Clive Woodward was frustrated by England’s failure to experiment with different combinations in their 13-6 World Cup warm-up defeat by Wales on Saturday.
“When the World Cup is done and dusted no one will remember or care about the result of these warm-up games,” Woodward, who led England to World Cup glory in 2003, wrote in a column for the Daily Mail.
“But (coach) Eddie Jones might remember his failure to try out some of his options and it could come back to haunt him.
“If Ford is going to have a stint at nine in Japan, play him at nine before we get there. If it costs you a warm-up game, it doesn’t matter. But it could come back to bite you further down the line if he has not had a run there,” Woodward added.
“He (Jones) and his group of players will be judged on the World Cup… they will definitely not be judged on these games, so that is why they should be used for experimenting with different combinations.
“England did not bother with that, which was puzzling.”
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