Jones: Japan aiming to 'make Twickenham sky fall in on distracted England'
Former England head coach Eddie Jones has said his Japan side are aiming to "make the Twickenham sky fall in on" Steve Borthwick's "distracted" charges in Saturday's Nations Championship Test.
Eddie Jones, who coached England between 2016 and 2022, is now in charge of Japan for second time, with Brave Blossoms facing England at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham on Saturday (4.40pm kick-off); Jones tells BBC his Japan are aiming to 'make Twickenham sky fall in' on 'distracted' England
Former England head coach Eddie Jones has said his Japan side are aiming to "make the Twickenham sky fall in on" Steve Borthwick's "distracted" charges in Saturday's Nations Championship Test.
Jones, who oversaw England between 2016 and 2022, before being dismissed a year before the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France after a calendar year saw just five victories and England fans booing the side following defeat to South Africa.
The 66-year-old has since returned to Australia for an ill-fated and short second reign which ended in a first-ever World Cup pool stage exit for the Wallabies, and then returned as Japan head coach in 2024.
Ahead of his Brave Blossoms side facing England at Twickenham on Saturday, Jones has sought to stoke the flames.
"We're massive underdogs," Jones told the BBC. "We've got to find a way to disrupt an England side that's looking at New Zealand next week [Saturday November 21] and sometimes may be a little bit distracted.
"Our opportunity is to get in there, cause some havoc, cause some chaos, put off their game, get the crowd booing. Then the sky starts to come in on Twickenham and you never know what can happen.
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"We've seen it happen with Italy and other countries [Italians beat England for first time in March].
"The noise does get to the team and it can be pretty loud in England. You've got a lot of newspapers, a lot of media, probably more than any other country in the world.
"Sometimes that can weigh down on the players and it's the job of the leadership to get the players thinking straight.
"Steve [Borthwick] is an outstanding coach and a very intelligent man, and a really good coach. So I've got the highest respect for him."
England are entering Saturday's Test off the back of a much-needed, morale-boosting 45-22 victory over Australia in the Nations Championship.
In a week when Borthwick came under intense scrutiny following newspaper reports of a summer rift with his England squad - claims denied by Jamie George to Sky Sports - England responded with a seven-try performance and record point haul against Australia.
Back-row Henry Pollock also starred out of position on the wing for 40 minutes, having emerged at half-time to score two tries en route to victory.
"I wouldn't look too much into it," Jones added. "Everyone was licking the ice cream on Sunday. They were on the front foot, everyone's lining up to run the ball, there's no pressure in the game.
"He's a fast back-rower, he got the ball in space and he's a talented player, there's no doubt about it, but you couldn't read into it any more than that."
