Eddie Jones Re-Appointed Brave Blossoms Head Coach – What Has The Reaction Been?

One of the messiest coaching sagas came to a conclusion when the JRFU announced the confirmation of Australian Eddie Jones as the national team men’s XV Head Coach starting on 1 January 2024.

The former Brave Blossoms, England, and Australian men’s coach was embroiled in speculation about being linked to the job throughout his time with the Wallabies. It’s fair to say not everyone is happy with the appointment, and the JRFU will be in the spotlight if things don’t go their way.

Jamie Joseph had made it known before the RWC 2023 that he would vacate his role as Brave Blossoms Head Coach, and until recently, it appeared that South African Frans Ludeke and Jones were the frontrunners for the role.

Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU) have opted to return to Eddie Jones to lead the side forward, he most famously earned them a win over the Springboks at RWC 2015. His tenures as England and Australian Head Coach have not been smooth sailing and he agreed on this new role six weeks after he walked out on the Wallabies and their worst performance at a Rugby World Cup.

At a press conference held on 14th December 2023, Eddie Jones claimed he did not “feel any guilt at all” about becoming Japan’s head coach.  He told the media “I wish Australia all the best. I feel terrible about the results because I wanted to go back and change Australia. But I don’t feel any guilt at all about this process.” He also reconfirmed his claim that he had not interviewed for the Japan job until December 2023 and once his role with Australia had come to an end

His squad for the RWC in France omitted players such as former captain Michael Hooper and Japan-based Quade Cooper which was met with some backlash too.

As for his role with Japan, he wants to transform the team into one “that has a real identity”. The Brave Blossoms’ blueprint as a fast-paced and highly fit team was started by Jones but improved upon by former coach Jamie Joseph as he led the team to a first quarterfinal at RWC 2019 in Japan. Jones has set a Brave Blossoms target of a World Cup knockout round in 2027 in Australia.

Photo Credit: JRFU

Jones will have to partially rebuild the Brave Blossoms as some senior players have retired from international duty, including hooker Shota Horie, whereas Michael Leitch has said he wants to play until RWC 2027.

It has been suggested by some media that he was successful in securing the role due to his connection with JRFU president Masato Tsuchida.

Jones said at the JRFU press conference, “When I coached Japan in 2015, we were a team that hadn’t won a game at the World Cup for 24 years and it wasn’t a team that the Japanese public loved. Now we have a team that’s loved, and rugby is a major player in society. To be part of the push for Japan to be in the top eight, or even top four of the world is an exciting opportunity.”

He added, “We need to develop talent in Japan to play this sort of rugby. Because we are a small team, we need to play the game faster – faster with our feet and faster with our heads. I’m looking forward to getting stuck into it and taking Japan forward.”

Photo Credit: JRFU

What The Players & Media Have Said About Eddie Jones As Japan’s Head Coach

Nick White, the Wallaby scrumhalf told The Roar, “If that was better for him to go to Japan, then I’d rather him just be a little bit more open and transparent about it. We’re all grown-ups and would have been OK with it.”

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