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Felix Jones: From rooming with Howlett to coaching with Rassie
By Liam Heagney
It was very apt where Felix Jones was seated on Wednesday afternoon, conducting his final media briefing as a Springboks assistant coach.
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In another life, a tiny community town hall with a maximum capacity of 60 or so people would have been the type of Irish venue where he would have picked up the bodhran and banged out a few tunes with Hermitage Green, the band fronted by Barry Murphy, his former Munster and Ireland teammate.
It’s some years now since music got the squeeze, his coaching career and a young family taking up his time, yet the Salle Jeanne d’Arc venue for his final media gig working with South Africa before his 2024 Guinness Six Nations switch to Steve Borthwick’s England was quiet the cozy throwback to times past.
Of course, it helped that numerous questions invited him to jog his memory.
Take the New Zealand media contingent in attendance; they quickly want to know how Jones got on way back with ex-All Blacks star Doug Howlett when he pitched to play at Munster – and also what it was like to be coached there by Rob Penney, who is now in charge at the Crusaders.
“Doug was my first roommate when I first joined Munster as a young full-back/winger,” he recalled. “I couldn’t believe my luck who I got roomed with. I learned from one of the best there. Doug was a great mentor, a really good person and somebody I stayed close with even after we retired from playing. I know he is now enjoying life back home.
“Rob was a brilliant coach for my development, he changed the way I thought about the game. He changed the way, even the current players in Munster who still play and play for Ireland played the game. Two great people.”
Next, it was a clatter of Irish media curious to chat about Jones’ development as a coach. That’s an intriguing topic given that he turned down a contract extension at Munster in May 2019 and was soon to receive a call out of the blue asking him to help out at the Springboks where Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber had been working since exiting the Irish province in the 2017/18 season.
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How much has he grown as a coach under their influence? “It’s hard as you are in the thick of it. I’ll have to answer that in a couple of years’ time and I can probably give you a better answer of the effect it’s had. I’d rather just say I have got so much gratitude for the experience.
“Initially when I first came in there was a lot of familiarity with how things had been done because it was Rassie, Jacques and Aled Walters at the time. It was quite a quick transition and there were a lot of similarities. I think they were expecting me to do similar things as I was doing in Munster when we were all together.
“Slotting in was very straightforward and from there because it has been over four years now, it has naturally taken on other responsibilities… trying to figure out what is actually going to make the team operate better. I’d say it is more organic the way things have been done and you are always trying to improve things.
“They [Erasmus and co] think about things differently than you would expect. You are constantly in a meeting or coaching box and you’re discussing tactics informally. It is just another point of view that in most cases people won’t have considered.
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“Everything has been enjoyable. There are times when Rassie will have an idea that is definitely sprung from himself. We get to discuss that then for all of us to agree.
Springboks get down to Rugby World Cup final training on Wednesday in Paris. #NZLvRSA #RWC2023 #Springboks pic.twitter.com/QEBudLn9yu
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 25, 2023
“There is a huge amount of alignment when there is a new idea whether it has been his or one of the other coaches or management or players. Everything gets discussed, everyone makes a plan and we align on that. If we agree then great. If someone disagrees and we have a better plan then we go with that. It’s always enjoyable.
“Jacques is an incredible person. Unbelievable work ethic, I’ve never seen anything like it. This week has been the exact same as any other. Same process.
“I have learned a huge amount about how to build my week as a coach, not for me but for the delivery by the team. On selection, there are still a couple of final discussions. Everyone is putting up their hand and wants to play. Everyone is prepared to perform so it’s difficult.”
Understandably, a smattering of South African reporters also want Jones’ perspective about his southern hemisphere experience. “Hard question. I don’t think I could sum it up. I could just say that I am really grateful.
“I have a lot of gratitude to not only the management but the players as well and the people behind the scenes. The greater rugby community in South Africa, the franchises, the coaches there. It’s been incredible.
“There are certain parts that have definitely changed my view. I think before, and I think it’s shared by people who have had a similar rugby upbringing in terms of where and how, collision winning is a skill. It can be considered as it’s just people hitting things but there is a huge amount that goes into winning a collision.”
His proudest South African rugby takeaway? “Just how we stuck together. On field and off-field every team faces challenges and sometimes you come out the right side of the result.
“But there have been many games where we have lost via the last kick of the game or in the dying minutes, but I have never seen us giving up. Off the field, there are so many challenges in general in South Africa but for the guys, it just makes them tighter.”
English reporters were also on the scene, quizzical about the particular remit Jones would have when he joins England in the new year. It comes amid speculation that current defence coach Kevin Sinfield is on his way out of the Borthwick set-up.
“I’m an assistant coach so between myself, Richard (Wigglesworth) and Steve that will all get sorted out. I’d rather not go into that with a big game at the weekend.”
And about that big game, the final versus the All Blacks at Stade de France: what is Jones feeling just days out from the Springboks’ attempt to complete back-to-back title wins for the first time ever?
“I don’t think emotion is coming into it too much. We are just hugely excited because of the game and there are plenty of players on both sides where it might be their last-ever game for South Africa or New Zealand.
Wonderful ball skill from Springboks prop Trevor Nyakane. #NZLvRSA #RWC2023 #Springboks pic.twitter.com/GMUPtIRXGh
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 25, 2023
“It might be their last ever game, so the coaches are taking a bit of a back seat there and focussing on the players and making sure the team vibe or team atmosphere is correct.
“The introduction of Joe (Schmidt) and Jason Ryan, there have been many good developments in their game,” he added about the strides taken in the last year by the All Blacks.
“Not just one area. If I had to highlight one I would say the ruck, it has been excellent. They do appear to be a very complete team. There has been development in their kicking game.
“The way they put you under pressure, not only with their passing game but their ability to also use the ball off of their foot. I would say those two areas would be key.”
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The weather was dreadful but the playing surface was great so there is no real excuse for such another poor standard of play from both sides. Dragons just the better team. But, what a shocking decision by the TMO not to award the Fifita try. This pretty much sums up Welsh rugby with poor teams and poor officials. The WRU have a lot of work to do and it needs to be done quickly to avoid rugby being lost to our future generations.
Go to commentsNo chance of Borthwick selecting any young talent. He announced his selection policy from the outset with naming a poor OF as Captain, retaining an equally poor Youngs and Vunipola brothers when there were many better EQP in the Premiership. SB revival of Leicester was based on SA muscle and a terrific Welsh flanker he has generally ignored young English talent.
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