Eddie Jones says he has a “strong back and shoulders” after coming under fire from Steve Borthwick over the state of his former England team.
In the wake of England’s opening Six Nations loss to Scotland, Borthwick said that the squad he inherited from Jones “wasn’t good at anything”.
MORE: Borthwick blames Eddie for England’s woes
The new England boss had only had 11 days’ training time with the squad after coaching mentor Jones was sacked following a poor November series that capped England’s worst year since 2008.
Jones, who was hired as Wallabies head coach, responded to Borthwick’s comments on his self-titled podcast EDDIE.
“He [Borthwick] is probably right. And that was part of the problem,” Jones said. “We were trying to morph a team that had been a very good set-piece and a very good kicking team. The way the game is played at the moment, that will win you games, but it is probably not good enough to be a World Cup champion.
“So expanding the attack sometimes takes away from your strength. They are going through that difficult period now where they are trying to get the balance right in the game. There is no doubt Steve will fix it.
“And keep blaming me, that is alright. I have got a pretty strong back and pretty strong shoulders to absorb that.
“When you are young players, inconsistency is unfortunately a part of your apprenticeship at Test level. You get lapses of concentration. As they build their Tests up and build their maturity, they will be really good players.
“There is probably still a bit more pain to go for England which is hard for the supporters and hard for the coaches, but I am sure they will get through it.”
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