Time for England coach Eddie Jones to panic - former player after fast-paced Pretoria thriller

Eddie Jones...All Black and Springbok-induced panic attacks? Photo / Photosport

The rugby thriller in Pretoria is enough to cause England rugby coach Eddie Jones "panic attacks" according to one of their former test forwards.

Brian Moore, the former hooker, has — in effect — suggested to his Telegraph readers that England has no answer to the best of the All Blacks and Springboks players.

England's troubled year could get worse with matches against South Africa, New Zealand, Japan and Australia crammed into November.

Moore wrote: "Where, for example, will Jones find the equal of Faf de Klerk? A livewire scrum-half with an uncanny ability to exploit the narrow side and a running threat that perpetually keeps opposition back rows honest. He is the fulcrum which is the basis of all that the Springboks do well."

Moore added that neither England halfback candidates Danny Care or Ben Youngs can mount the "constant running threat of either de Klerk or Aaron Smith".

Mighty 'Bok hooker Malcolm Marx and the injured All Black Brodie Retallick were the forwards picked out by Moore as hard to beat.

"New Zealand snatched a win, though not at their imperious best, and the reason is summed up in four words – Brodie Retallick is missing," he wrote.

"How to compete against two of the best teams on the planet – physical, talented and brave and with a lot of rugby common sense as well?"

"Any number of All Blacks are yardsticks against which the best can be judged but overall the sheer pace at which both teams play is enough to cause panic attacks."

Meanwhile another former England player turned the spotlight on the All Blacks previously lauded Aaron Smith-Beauden Barrett combination.

Writing for Sky Sports, Stuart Barnes believed the power of the Springbok game blunted the All Blacks' brilliance.

Aaron Smith...no good on the back foot? Photo / Photosport

"Going backwards for much of the match, Aaron Smith looked far from the outstanding scrum-half in world rugby he is when New Zealand are dictating the pace," he said.

"The half-back partnership with Beauden Barrett has crumbled under pressure on a few occasions. It didn't get into gear before Hansen brought TJ Perenara and Richie Mo'unga on with Barrett switching to full-back.

"The Northern Hemisphere will have looked at the problems caused by the South African line speed and prepare to blast the Blacks out of their stride.

"A couple of days before the game Sonny Bill Williams was talking of the extra defensive line speed of the European teams. The world champions will be working on some variations to counter this aspect of the European game.

"(but) all this talk of the Springboks but what a win. The hosts were the better team on the field but an unwavering commitment saw (Steve) Hansen's team surge back into the game and past South Africa in a manner no other nation could have managed.

"Their fitness, organisation and determination to win for each other was exceptional."

Barnes pointed out that South Africa will be without their inspirational halfback de Klerk against England because the upcoming games fall outside the official international window.