Eddie Jones insisted he had no regrets over the decision to replace Marcus Smith with George Ford at Murrayfield as England’s Guinness Six Nations campaign was undermined by a fresh injury blow.
Flanker Lewis Ludlam, one of the shining lights on a bleak afternoon against Scotland, sustained rib cartilage damage in the 20-17 round one defeat and will definitely miss Sunday’s clash with Italy.
To compound matters, it appears unlikely that Courtney Lawes will recover from concussion in time for the trip to Rome, but veteran lock Joe Launchbury has been called-up following his lengthy lay-off with a knee problem.
Welcome back @joe_launch 🌹
Get well soon @LewisLudlam. pic.twitter.com/MmFAclz8uc— England Rugby (@EnglandRugby) February 8, 2022
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Much of the fallout from Saturday’s opener has focused on Jones’ call to make an influential change at fly-half where Smith was withdrawn for Ford in the 63rd minute.
England were leading 17-10 at the time and Smith was fresh from scoring a dynamic try and rifling over a penalty, but they unravelled in a final quarter of harmful mismanagement to allow Scotland to retain the Calcutta Cup.
Jones has been heavily criticised since, but the head coach is satisfied it was the right call at the time.
“I’m the best coach in the world with hindsight. I’ve done a few TV commentaries and I was the smartest coach in the world,” Jones said.
“But I made a decision on game day and I don’t have any regrets. I’m looking forward to Italy now.”
