Eddie Jones Calls For Less Focus On Power And Strength With More Ball-in-play Time

England head coach Eddie Jones has called on World Rugby to show more leadership to make the game a more appetising spectacle.

Jones extended his contract as the England boss until the end of the 2023 Rugby World Cup having led the side to the Six Nations Grand Slam in 2016 - his first tournament at the helm - and they were champions again a year later, while only a defeat to South Africa stopped them winning last year's Rugby World Cup.

The Australian believes stronger leadership is necessary from World Rugby to make the game a more appetising spectacle, based less on power and strength and with more ball-in-play time.

“The game’s becoming a real power game, unless they make changes,” Jones said on The Magic Academy podcast.

Jones went on to explain that a test at Twickenham is 110 minutes long with the ball in play for just 31% of that time. 

“A Test at Twickenham is 110 minutes long, 35 minutes ball in play and 65 minutes ball out of play. We don’t have strong leadership in World Rugby at the moment. I think the game needs to become a little more continuous because it’s evolving now to be a game for big, powerful athletes and the game has always been a charter for different sized athletes. That’s a worrying thing for me.”

These comments from Jones come after he warned France of a brutal encounter ahead of their clash at Twickenham in the Six Nations.

"France can expect absolute brutality from England, we are going to go out there to make sure they understand what Test rugby is. It is about being brutal, it is about being physical." Jones said.

Jones laid down the gauntlet ahead of England's 2020 Six Nations opener against France and it backfired, as Les Bleus clinched a 24-17 victory in Paris.