Few names spark as much interest, fear and hope into the hearts of rugby fans as does the name of Eddie Jones. How do interest, fear, and hope all go together Well, once you learn a little about Eddie's life, you will quickly come to understand. This is a man who not only requires a near-superhuman amount of effort from his athletes, but also requires it of himself. Eddie Jones is likely the King of all rugby coaches, let me tell you why.
Eddie's Australian-Japanese Boyhood
Eddie Jones was raised in a home of a native Australian father and a Japanese mother. Since the time he was young he admired his parents for all they went through on his behalf. Eddie was raised in a community of mostly colored individuals. He was often poked fun at during his schooling. Though he never quite outwardly admits it, he was raised in a society still feeling the tremors of racism passing by. Due to these issues he was called names on a regular basis. in his biography he states "I was kind of like Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer. Except I had more friends than him."
Eddie's tight-knit group of friends would often play rugby and cricket. They didn't play on organised teams so much as playing in the fields near their houses day in and day out. This was the era that really developed Eddie's love for sport. Though he had a particular affinity to rugby. This led him to what he didn't realize would become his whole career.
Randwick and the Warhatas
As Eddie got older he joined the formal team at Randwick. This was a rag-tag group of boys who just loved the game. They may not have had the funds that some of the richer schools had, but Eddie and his team of misfits were able to take on the best of the best in Australia. This eventually got Eddie noticed as a rugby player, leading him to the New-South Whales Warhatas. One of the teams that now plays in Super Rugby, one of the biggest leagues in the world today, he played Hook on all these teams.
The hooker was traditionally a bigger player, usually found inside the action of brutally big bodies smashing against each other like waves cresting up against a cliff-side. Eddie was not big. But he made the most of every inch on his frame. This granted him many opportunities to play, but he ended his playing career just 2 years into the big leagues to go teach.
Japan: Eddie's Greatest Victory
Eddie didn't teach for long, he couldn't. Eddie missed the game so much that when a call came, offering him a position as an assistant coach on the Suntory Sungoliaths staff, he took it immediately. This eventually led to him coaching Suntory from one of the mid-tier teams to winning multiple titles in the Japan Top League. He did so well as the coach of Suntory that he was asked to coach the Japan National Rugby Team.
This was one if the biggest roller-coasters in his career. He was given a few years to whip Japan into a world-class team. They had gone to every world cup because of diversity reasons. Japan beat everyone in Asia by a landslide, but as Asia's representative in the Rugby World Cup, they were the least successful team in rugby history.
That was B.E. Befor Eddie.
Eddie switched their whole strategy around. They stopped playing like every other team in the world and started playing "like Japanese were made to play" as Eddie puts it. Within three years, Eddie didn't just make them a team that could win a couple of games. Eddie made Japan into a team that beat the rugby gods of South Africa in the biggest upset in sporting history.
Eddie in England and What's Next
Eddie was called up by England rugby shortly after his wild success at the 2015 Rugby World Cup. He took a job as the head coach of the England National Rugby Team. He worked hard to make England a top performer and succeeded in getting England a second-place spot in the 2019 Rugby World Cup. Shortly thereafter, in 2021, he wasn't able to pull through for the Six Nations Championship. England took fifth out of 6, only beating Italy. This leaves some question as to whether Eddie will coach England in the 2023 World Cup. but in my humble opinion, Eddie had bigger fish to fry than the 6 Nations Cup. He has his eyes on the real prize, he wants to raise that cup above his head when England takes it all in 2023.
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