Eddie Jones’ Japan will face the Wallabies next year. Will he still be in charge?

The Wallabies are set to play Japan in October next year but whether they’ll be doing battle with former coach Eddie Jones remains to be seen, with the Australian under pressure to keep his job with the Brave Blossoms.

The Japanese Rugby Football Union board last week met to address Jones’ future, a year after the 64-year-old was controversially recruited to return as Japan’s head coach.

Jones was unveiled by the JRFU for his second stint with the Brave Blossoms in December last year having quit the Wallabies five weeks earlier, less than one year into a five-year deal with Rugby Australia.

This masthead revealed Jones had begun interviewing for the Japanese job on Zoom in August, just weeks before the Wallabies’ disastrous Rugby World Cup campaign, which saw the team fail to make the quarter-finals for the first time.

Jones repeatedly denied speaking to the JRFU or other associated parties before finally admitting he had had contact with a recruiting firm. The JRFU said Jones was the man to turn around their fortunes on a four-year deal and take them to the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

But just a year on, the JRFU are already re-considering that plan after a year of poor results under Jones and amid reports of an unhappy team environment.

Eddie Jones at the press conference announcing his role as Japan coach in December, 2023.Credit: Viola Kam

Japan won just four of 11 Test matches in 2024 – against Canada, USA, Samoa and Uruguay – and conceded over 40 points in all but one of their seven losses.

The JRFU board met last week to discuss Jones’ future, according a report by Japanese news outlet Nikkei. And though the board decided to keep Jones, the report also indicates he may still be sacked if performances don’t improve quickly.

Japan are scheduled to play Wales in July next year, and Nikkei reported the JRFU will consider “quotas” like world rankings and, depending on the results, Jones may still be dismissed.

Japan were at their highest-ever ranking of seventh after the 2019 Rugby World Cup but slipped as low as 14th this year, before finishing the year at No.13.

Eddie Jones at Japan training in London in November, 2024.Credit: AP

“There were some harsh opinions, but the board decided to support him and decided to keep him in his position,” JRFU executive director Kensuke Iwabuchi told Nikkei.

Rugby Australia and the JRFU have all but finalised an agreement to play a Test match between the Wallabies and Japan in Tokyo in late October, which will be part of the Spring Tour.

Nikkei also reported the JRFU had been concerned about Jones’ behaviour and a player survey had been conducted. The suggestion of player unrest came after Jones was last month slammed by former England halfback Danny Care, who wrote in a book that Jones ruled by fear and England camp was a like a “dystopian novel”.

JRFU chairman Masato Tsuchida told Nikkei: “We will discuss the results of the survey at the board meeting next month, including whether there really was any element of power harassment.”

Tsuchida, who is a long-time backer of Jones, defended the coach’s results, saying the turnover of players after the 2023 Rugby World Cup would have made it difficult for any new coach. Sources familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity to speak freely, said Jones had argued to the JRFU board he needed more investment in his coaching staff.

Following heavy losses to New Zealand, France and England in November, Jones said he had blooded 20 new players in 2024.

“At the last World Cup, Japan had the oldest squad, so we had to change the team and with that comes some pain. But we’re making a massive investment for the future,” Jones said.

Jones used the same reasoning for sending the youngest and most inexperienced Wallabies squad ever to a World Cup, but new Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt recalled and relied upon a number of experienced discards this year, including Tom Wright, Harry Wilson, Jake Gordon, Noah Lolesio and Len Ikitau.

Jones also claimed his departure from the Wallabies was due to Rugby Australia reneging on funding promises.

Jones’ poor run with Japan continued a run of failure for the experienced coach. From November 2022 to November 2024 – with England, Australia and Japan – Jones has coached for six wins from 24 Tests, and only one against a tier one nation. That was Japan in 2022, who were ranked 10th in the world at the time.

Japan have already qualified for a spot in the 24-team Rugby World Cup in 2027, having finished in the top three of their pool in the 2023 tournament.

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