Home » Rugby Union » Jones takes blame for England's shock loss to Scotland in Six Nations

Jones takes blame for England's shock loss to Scotland in Six Nations

02/06/2021

England boss Eddie Jones takes the blame for shock loss to Scotland in Six Nations opener as he admits he ‘didn’t prepare the team well enough’ meaning ‘we were a long way off our best’ at Twickenham

Scotland won Calcutta Cup in England for the first time since 1983 on Saturday
Duhan Van Der Merwe’s first-half try boosted the visitors to a 11-6 victory
Eddie Jones admitted post-match his side’s preparation had been poor

One of England’s poorest performances of Eddie Jones’ reign saw Scotland steal a famous victory at Twickenham, and the Australian coach shouldered the blame.

Duhan Van Der Merwe’s first-half try was enough to humiliate Owen Farrell and Co at home, with Hamish Watson smacking the ball out of play to a triumphant roar.

The defeat got England’s Six Nations campaign off to the worst possible start, and Jones admitted post-match that his side were underprepared for the determined Stuart Hogg-led Scotland XV.

Scotland sealed a famous victory over England on Saturday to kick-off their Six Nations tilt

It was a humiliating defeat for England, losing to the Scots at home for the first time since 1983

England head coach Eddie Jones shouldered full responsibility for the drab performance

‘Firstly, congratulations to Scotland. They played very well,’ Jones told ITV:

‘I thought they played with a lot of intent, a lot of spirit.

‘We just had one of those days. I didn’t prepare the team well enough. We weren’t quite right, we were a long way off our best.’

The Scottish roar at the full-time whistle brought to end 38-years of hurt, with their last victory in London coming all the way back in 1983.

Hogg, the visitors’ skipper, felt the historical significance of the triumph, as Scotland continue their progression.

Stuart Hogg captained a determined Scotland side as they out-fought the hosts in London

‘It’s amazing for us,’ Hogg told ITV. ‘We can’t repeat what’s happened in the past, that’s gone, but we are very much in control of what can happen in the future.

‘We said that and we believed in each other from the very beginning and to a man we were outstanding today. Credit to England, they brought it to us, but we stood firm defensively.

‘We got excited during the week, we knew we could put in a performance. If we got everything right we gave ourselves a chance of winning.

‘We are not going to get too far ahead, we are going to enjoy this one and then on to Wales next week.’