Eddie Jones: England pay cut is not 'any grand gesture by me'

Eddie Jones has insisted his decision to take a 25 per cent pay cut in his reported £700,000 per annum contract was not a “grand gesture”, the England head coach playing down the significance of the move as the Rugby Football Union faces up to potential losses of £100million due to the impact of the pandemic.

With the Rugby Football Union making 139 redundancies to try and cut costs, Jones is likely to have to continue taking a pay cut and admits he has yet to discover what impact the RFU’s financial problems will have on his England management set up.

Jones, who has returned to his Surrey home from an extended stay in Japan during the lockdown, said: “I'm not an economist. All I am is a rugby coach and at some stage, I will be told the games and what staff I can have and what players are available. 

"The reality for staff and players is the cuts. We have to look at it in terms of what is happening in society I feel for anyone who has had a cut or lost their jobs. We know that is happening at the moment.

“You have to keep things in perspective and it's a difficult time for sport. We just have to adapt to what is in front of you. We will adapt to any situation. I'm not expecting anything and all I worry about what is happening today and whatever comes we will find a solution to it.

“I don’t think it is any grand gesture by me. I was asked to do it and I understand the situation. I worked in a school for three months with no pay (in Australia) and a number of us decided to stay and work. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices and the sacrifice I'm making personally compared to what other people are making in sport and society is minimal.”

A pay dispute saw Manu Tuilagi quit Leicester and join Sale and Jones revealed he gave the England centre advice about what he should do next. 

“Manu made up his own mind and we kept in contact the whole time. I gave him some small pieces of advice and he knew what he wanted to do. He is a valuable Test player and his performances in the World Cup and Six Nations showed there is more in him. I'm delighted with his decision and we are glad he has made it.”

Jones dismissed fears that key England players like Owen Farrell and Maro Itoje could be hampered by agreeing to stay for a season with Saracens in the Championship.

“I will be comfortable if they are in good form. Players who have a track record of Test match success have a pretty good idea of where they are and where they need to be. If I look at Owen Farrell it doesn’t matter what game he is playing, I will have a good idea of where he is. “

The head coach is still waiting to discover who England will play in their November internationals. “Usually you have plenty of time to prepare. Every team is going to start at zero and you will have a certain amount of time to prepare and whoever prepares well will proposer."