No easy start for Jones

Eddie Jones faces multiple challenges as he starts his new job as England head coach.

Jones suffered his first rejection when Welshman Leigh Jones, who assisted Jones as Japan's defensive coach at this year's World Cup, turned down the offer of joining him in England. Leigh Jones has since joined the Hong Kong national team as head of performance and seems set to stay put. It is rumoured that Saracens’ Paul Gustard is now in line to take up the position. 

Eddie Jones is in talks, via the RFU, with a number of English coaches to join his coaching staff, but nothing has been confirmed yet. The fate of Stuart Lancaster’s three assistant coaches are also undecided as they wait to speak with Jones before any decisions are made.

In another setback, Jones is currently in Tokyo waiting for relevant paperwork to be approved before he can return to England. When he was unveiled to the press as England’s new head coach he was in the country on a visitor’s permit.

He was meant to start work on Tuesday in the most lucrative job in World Rugby, but it seems that this is not speeding up the approval of his application.

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