EDDIE JONES HAS said England have the depth of talent to cope with Maku Vunipola’s absence against Ireland this Sunday.
The England prop – who recorded an astonishing 29 tackles in last year’s win over Ireland at the Aviva – is unavailable for the Twickenham showdown due to family reasons, leaving Joe Marler and Ellis Genge to compete for the No1 shirt.
Jones is unworried, not just because Marler is an established international but also because Genge produced an explosive performance when he came off the bench to play against Scotland two weeks ago.
“Mako’s a quality player but we are lucky we are blessed with two outstanding loose-head props in Joe and Ellis, so we can recover the loss of Mako. But it’s disappointing to lose him,” Jones said.
There is good news for the England coach – Manu Tualigi and Henry Slade returning from groin and ankle injuries respectively. Both, the coach claims, are fit to start on Sunday. “Manu trained fully so should be in contention for selection. It’s good to have a quality player back,” Jones said. “Slade also trained so we have just got to monitor his progress. He has a positive chance. He’s a quality player. This gives us more options.”
Yet Ireland remain a concern, not just because of their two wins from the opening games of this year’s championship but also because of the manner of their win here, two years ago, when they wrapped the game up by half-time.
“Test rugby is like F1,” Jones said. “Get out of the blocks quickly. I’m sure they’re going to want to do the same thing. We’ll see who can get out of the blocks the quickest.”
Ireland will also race to the breakdown, a key factor in deciding who wins Sunday’s scrap. “The Six Nations is about the tackle contest, it’s the most unique competition in the world,” Jones said.
And for once Jones – the poor man’s Mourinho – didn’t take a pop at Johnny Sexton. “We can’t control how he speaks to the referee,” he said. “The only thing you’ve got to do in the Six Nations is win … that’s the only thing that counts.”
