Rugby Australia board member Daniel Herbert and chief executive Phil Waugh are both confident that Eddie Jones still has the magic touch required to turn the Wallabies into a competitive force in 2023.
Herbert, the Rugby World Cup-winning centre, was part of the process that led to Dave Rennie’s sacking and the dramatic return of Jones in January.
Despite initially talking up the prospect of immediate results, the Wallabies have been uninspiring under Jones so far, thrashed by an understrength Springboks in Pretoria and then upset by the Pumas in Sydney to sit 0-2 in the Rugby Championship.
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Jones is contracted until the 2027 World Cup on home soil.
“I was never one who thought it was going to be a quick turnaround and all of a sudden you change one thing and it’s going to have far reaching implications straight away,” Herbert told Wide World of Sports.
“Every team he goes into, every environment is going to be a little bit different, but you can’t question the record in my view.
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“Australia, we’ve been very quick to chop and change and move in different directions … a work in progress but, no, absolute faith in Eddie because he’s got the runs on the board.”
Jones has led teams to World Cup finals in 2003 and 2019 and was an assistant for the victorious Springboks in 2007.
“Having a look at the past is a pretty good indicator of what can happen in the future and whether we’re sixth in the world or eighth in the world is inconsequential. You want to be first,” Herbert said.
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“We weren’t getting there (under Rennie) and so we’ve got to change some things to get there and I think we’ve got to change quite a few things within the game more broadly.”
Waugh, a former Wallabies captain who played under Jones, did not try to hide his disappointment when speaking to reporters at the British and Irish Lions tour launch in Brisbane on Wednesday.
“There was so much optimism heading into Pretoria,” Waugh said.
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“We started well and didn’t turn pressure into points. Argentina, patches were good and, again a fast start, but they didn’t get as many points as they should have in the first 10-15 minutes so the Argies got back into it.
“Ill discipline, Eddie talked about. But more broadly we want to be No.1 in the world so we have to work hard and build that Australian culture of fighting hard, and that’s been our competitive edge for a long time.
“Eddie coming back and driving that passion and pride is important.”
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