England must rediscover mojo while coach acknowledges tension before visit of unbeaten
Ireland in Six Nations
The Guinness Six Nations championship, to use its full title, badly needs an uplifting, glass-full type of weekend. To date the weather has been the primary winner and, aside from Italy’s games, try bonus points have materialised about as often as Eddie Jones wears a cassock. Even the tournament’s true believers could do with a little nourishment of the soul.
With Jones also in sour mood in many of his midweek press briefings, there is even more reason to hope Ireland’s visit to Twickenham proves a timely antidote.
England, in particular, could do with delivering a knockout blow to perceptions their progress is stalling. The team who looked so irresistibly strong against
New Zealand in a
World Cup semi-final three months ago have not rediscovered their mojo or given much credence to Jones’s pre-tournament ambition to create the greatest team the world has seen.