Chris Rattue: Welcome back to the real world, Eddie

COMMENT

Question: Is the Eddie Jones who gave referee Andre Watson a blast this week the same Eddie Jones who told English coach Sir Clive Woodward to leave the refs alone?

Answer: Of course he is, you silly sod.

Next question: Then how can a bloke who was so righteous break his own rule two weeks later?

Answer: 'Cos footy coaches make the rules up as they go along.

Ironic, huh. Eddie has been hoist by his own remarks - not that he would care of course. It's just another day in the hurly-burly of international sport, where blood quickly hits boiling point and the matter of right and wrong comes a distant second to the ruthless quest for victory.

The Australian coach had criticised Woodward for blasting Welshman Nigel Williams, who sent English lock Simon Shaw off at Eden Park.

Jones, who has a running spat with the English coach, said that although referees "often get it wrong" he believed teams should "accept refereeing as it is".

Jones added: "I used to be critical when I was younger, when I still had hair. But as coaches and officials, we should have a strong commitment to uphold the traditions of the game."

So what happened? Did Jones suddenly sprout hair, lose 20 years, and win back his rights to blow the whistle on whistle blowers?

The same Eddie Jones had this to say about Watson's control of the Wallabies' match against the Pacific Islanders in Adelaide on Saturday: "There are laws of the game and you expect the game to be played to them. You also expect the referee to enforce them."

Welcome back to the real world, Eddie. You have announced your return with comments which were as unsporting as those which marked Woodward's sojourn in this country.

For sure, Seilala Mapusua can count himself lucky to have been suspended for only one week, after a dangerous tackle on George Gregan which has sidelined the Wallaby captain for some time.

But apart from that, there was nothing out of the ordinary in test match terms, apart from the fact that many Pacific Island players hit extremely hard in the tackle.

Islanders' assistant coach Michael Jones said at a training run in Auckland this week that his players were not so good at the technical aspects of fighting for the ball on the ground. Instead, they had to rely on offensive tackling.

He conceded they had to be careful about not sliding their tackles up into danger areas and that there had been plenty of coaching in this department.

But the Pacific Islanders had nothing to be defensive about after their Adelaide performance. Instead, it was Eddie Jones who tainted the occasion with his complaints.

There was actually plenty to admire about the Islanders, who gave Australia a closer run than England managed.


The downside was the Adelaide venue which, from a lounge in Grey Lynn, appeared to have all the atmosphere of a sock drawer.

It should be a different atmosphere at Albany, although rugby venues around this city rarely reflect the Polynesian aspect of the place.

We live in an era where stadiums are named after banks, and the punters are treated like cash-flow machines. The Polynesian culture just doesn't fit in and rarely finds its place in the stands.

Michael Jones recalled this week the great atmosphere at Eden Park in 1993, when an All Black team he was in played Samoa.

It was about that time that I attended a Pacific league tournament in Auckland, which reached its climax with the most thrilling afternoon of sport I have attended in this city.

A no-name Tongan team were matched against a higher-rated Samoan side, who eventually prevailed in a low-scoring game of relentless hits and thrills at dowdy old Carlaw Park.

The Tongans are an incredibly strong race of people and their team played above their reputations, taking more fancied opponents to the limit.

To be among the crowd was an event in itself. The singing, dancing, noise and enthusiasm was extraordinary. It was one of those magic sporting moments.

Maybe Saturday night can be another one of those occasions, and who's to say such an atmosphere won't inspire the Pacific Islanders to remarkable deeds against the highly fancied All Blacks.