Tug of war.

England head coach Eddie Jones says he has always felt England underperform given the “financial security” of their union and the sheer “depth of players” available to him, which is why he decided to have a crack at being their head coach.

And it’s hard to disagree. From a playing perspective alone – just look at the pool of players available to England alongside the likes of Ireland and Wales. It’s incredible. They have 3-4 top class players in pretty much every position.

“I have always thought England have been underperforming,” Jones told the LifeTimes podcast

“If you have financial security and depth of players, you should be one of the top three countries in the world most of the time, and that hasn’t been the case. So I always thought there was an opportunity to do things better.

Jones enjoyed instant success when he initially took over, winning back-to-back Six Nations titles while going on an unprecedented unbeaten streak. But things have stalled in the last 12 months or so. So what’s the problem?

The Australian says it’s a difficult job because of the “battleground” that exists between the Premiership clubs and the RFU, with the players stuck in the middle. Whereas with the likes of Ireland and Wales – the unions own the clubs and are essentially in charge of the players and their availability and commitment to the national side.