Eddie Jones, the head coach of the Australian rugby team, has launched a scathing attack on the media, blaming them for being “part of the problem” with Australian rugby. This outburst comes as the Wallabies depart for France to begin their preparations for the upcoming Rugby World Cup, which starts on 8 September.
Last week, Jones named his final squad of 33 players for the tournament, a selection that raised eyebrows due to the exclusion of regular captain Michael Hooper and seasoned playmaker Quade Cooper. In an unusually heated press conference at Sydney Airport, Jones criticized the negativity surrounding his selection decisions and expressed confidence in his team’s abilities to prove the journalists wrong.
According to a report by Independent.co.uk, Jones said, “We’re going off to a World Cup you think we can’t win. You think the selection process is bad because the players complain, so I apologize for that. We’ll go out there and do our best, boys. If you haven’t got anything positive to say, don’t ask please.”
The omission of Cooper, 35, effectively signals the end of his international career. Despite making a successful comeback to the Australian setup under Dave Rennie, Jones opted for the young Carter Gordon and versatile Ben Donaldson as his fly half options. Jones admitted to being unable to contact Cooper after his exclusion from the squad, stating, “I tried to ring him and I can’t get a hold of him – that’s all I can do.”
Furthermore, the sudden departure of attack coach Brad Davis for “family reasons” adds to the turmoil within the Wallabies camp. However, Jones downplayed the impact of Davis’s exit, saying, “There’s an opportunity for us. We’ll improve our coaching staff. There’s a potential candidate ready to step up now. Yesterday our training was the best I’ve seen by a mile… we’re ready to show the world what we can do.”
The Wallabies’ first warm-up fixture will be against France at the Stade de France, a day before their opening World Cup match against Georgia on 9 Se
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