Brendan Cannon: Hamish McLennan gave Eddie Jones all the power, now he must resign

While everyone is calling for the head of Eddie Jones, he is not the first person who should fall on their sword, writes Wallabies great BRENDAN CANNON.

Hamish McLennan should be sacked before Eddie Jones, says Brendan Cannon. Picture: Tim Hunter

While everyone seems to be calling for the head of Eddie Jones, the first person who must walk away from Rugby Australia is chairman Hamish McLennan.

He went all in, took a huge gamble, and it has spectacularly backfired, leaving Australian rugby at an all-time low.

Jones holds all the cards because of how McLennan recruited him.

The chairman was touting it as a masterstroke decision, a captain’s call, and he went all in.

Jones being approached by RA immediately gave him the power in that dynamic.

McLennan made the bold move to sack Dave Rennie after he’d already held his first World Cup camp of the year, at great expense, to sign Jones through to the end of 2027.

Chairman Hamish McLennan (left) with coach Eddie Jones (centre) and CEO Andy Marinos. Picture: Tim Hunter

The fact he was offered a five-year deal is not the fault of Jones, it is the fault of RA.

It is concerning that RA would lock themselves into a deal for that long, seemingly without strict conditions around performance and exclusivity, and now find themselves in this predicament.

While most Wallabies fans want Jones to resign, he clearly isn’t going to.

The speculation that he is heading to Japan won’t go away, and I was surprised to hear RA chief executive Phil Waugh say he hasn’t called Japanese officials to ask if Jones is in line for the role.

It is one phone call that could put an end to this sorry mess.

Phil Waugh (left) with Hamish McLennan. Picture: AFP

It leaves RA in a difficult bind, do they sack Jones and pay him out an enormous amount of money they can ill-afford? Or do they persist with him, but face months and potentially years of negative sentiment around the national coach and his team?

It is a multimillion dollar question, because it requires a multimillion dollar answer.

And it comes back to McLennan’s decision-making.

The consequence for that decision is that he should fall on his sword, and become a spectator like the rest of us.

Because McLennan has been unable to secure private equity investment, and RA is reliant on big loans from World Rugby they need to pay back, while seeking more loans now to keep operating, I highly doubt they can afford a full payout for Jones.

If they’re going to sack him, they need to negotiate a lower settlement.

Wallabies head coach Eddie Jones is under pressure. Picture: Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

And if they can’t, we may be left with Jones until 2027.

If that is the case, RA’s marketing department needs to mount a significant public relations campaign behind the scenes and bring back the legitimacy of the Wallabies brand and belief in the players.

It was interesting that Jones regretted his pre-World Cup press conference. That is the first step in the right direction.

His treatment of the rugby media has been unbefitting of a national coach.

The rugby public wants the face of their team to be respectful and pleasant, at a time the game is shrinking before our eyes in the national landscape.

If Jones stays on for the full term, let’s hope he can do it the right way, not only in his team selections but his behaviour in front of the press.