Matt Dawson wants England Rugby World Cup ace left out as Eddie Jones bites back

Rugby World Cup: France and New Zealand prepare for second matches

England made it two wins from two at the Rugby World Cup by beating Japan on Friday. Although it was far from a vintage display, Steve Borthwick’s side continued their steady start, having prevailed over Argentina in their tournament opener.

Not all fans were pleased with England’s method of victory as boos rang around the stadium when they repeatedly booted the ball high. But they are effectively through to the last eight ahead of matches against Chile and Samoa over the coming weeks.

Another talking point at this year’s tournament in France has been the standard of refereeing. Officials remain under fierce scrutiny after Vincent Pinto’s red card for Portugal against Wales on Saturday was met with widespread criticism.

With all this to delve into and more, follow Express Sport‘s live Rugby World Cup updates below…

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Eddie Jones bites back

Australia manager Eddie Jones has taken a pop at New Zealand legend turned Rugby World Cup pundit Sonny Bill Williams, who questioned the former England boss’ team selection in the surprise loss to Fiji.

“I’m going to call it how it is – we are in a high-performance arena. And sometimes you live and die by your decisions and Eddie Jones got found out tonight unfortunately,” said Williams.

Jones has since responded: “When you are a television commentator, you are always right. Maybe I need to become a television commentator then I’ll be right all the time.

“Look, we’ve gone with a young team, I’ve got no regrets at all. We are building a team for the future and we are going to go through some pain.”

Dawson wants Farrell left out

Matt Dawson believes that England captain Owen Farrell is ‘not good enough’ to get in the team past George Ford.

The skipper was ineligible for the first two matches against Argentina and Japan after being red-carded in August.

And Dawson feels that manager Steve Borthwick should continue with Ford, even when Farrell returns.

“I don’t think Owen Farrell is good enough to get in the team at the moment, but let’s see how he goes over the next couple weeks,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“The off-field dynamic of how great Owen Farrell is, I have heard for years and years, but I have just not seen it on the pitch.

“What I do see up close and analyse is how he plays for England. I don’t see him bringing anything that isn’t already there.

“I would not put Marcus Smith in as a starting 15 but there is nothing wrong with bringing him on if you need to change a game up.”

Good morning!

Hello and welcome back to Express Sport‘s rolling coverage of the Rugby World Cup.

Set up camp right here throughout the day for all the latest fallout from England’s win over Japan, as the dust settles on an exciting weekend of action.

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