A departing senior Wallabies mentor has revealed how much damage Eddie Jones really did to the young playing group during his disastrous second coming as national coach.
Jones first coached the Wallabies from 2001 to 2005, leading them to the 2003 Rugby World Cup final on home soil.
However, a string of poor results followed, and he was sacked in late 2005 after Australia slumped to their worst run of defeats in decades.
Jones then returned as Wallabies coach in January 2023, replacing Dave Rennie in a shock move.
His comeback was billed as a bold gamble before a home World Cup cycle, but results quickly soured.
Australia won just two of nine Tests under his leadership, including a disastrous Rugby Championship campaign.
Eddie Jones’ second stint as Wallabies coach ended in disaster before he left the post in 2023
The Wallabies crashed out of the Rugby World Cup in the pool stage for the first time in history
Veteran Australian rugby coach Mike Cron was there to pick up the pieces as forwards coach after Jones’ departure
The Wallabies suffered record losses to South Africa and Argentina, exposing deep problems – highlighted by Jones’s controversial decision to axe senior players like Quade Cooper and Michael Hooper.
He instead backed a youthful squad for the 2023 Rugby World Cup, which many felt was underprepared. The gamble failed, as Australia lost pool matches to Fiji and Wales, exiting before the quarter-finals for the first time ever.
Reports emerged mid-tournament that Jones had secretly interviewed with Japan for their coaching role. This fuelled accusations of disloyalty and left fans furious at his apparent lack of commitment.
His public clashes with journalists and dismissive attitude only deepened the perception of chaos. By October 2023, with trust broken and results in ruins, Jones resigned from his position.
Mike Cron is the current forwards coach with the veteran of Australian rugby to stand down after tonight’s second Bledisloe Cup match in Perth.
He arrived at the post 18 months ago and said he found a group of broken, distrustful young men.
‘It surprised me, I felt sorry for them, a lot of them,’ Cron told News Corp.
‘So we had a wee bit of patching up to do, but once the players trusted you – it took a wee while – once they trust you, and know you’re not bulls*** and jelly beans, know that you’re real, we made good progress pretty quick, I thought.’
Cron said the Wallabies players were left scarred from the experience under Jones at the World Cup
Cron will stand down from his role after the second and final Bledisloe Cup Test in Perth on Saturday night against the All Blacks
There is still plenty of work to do for the Wallabies, who have sunk to seventh in the world rankings, but recent results have shown potential after the abominable 2023 World Cup.
‘The biggest thing that we have achieved is just developing a safe learning environment,’ Cron said.
‘I know that sounds pretty simple. It’s safe not just for physical safety, but psychological safety.
‘So we certainly developed that, [coach] Joe [Schmidt] and I.
‘The players know we’ll never yell, scream, abuse, belittle, embarrass them ever. So I think that was the biggest thing that we brought in to start with, that it is a safe learning environment.
‘And learning is motivation. Motivation is enjoyment. So we’ve developed that. So the boys enjoy getting out of bed, I think, coming to what we would call work.
‘It’s actually fun. And develop and try and get better every day.
‘So I think if you look back, that’s probably the biggest thing that we changed or tried to install that way, where the boys are trying to get better, and we’re helping them to give them an environment where they can grow.’
Schmidt praised Conn for his work in rebuilding the forward pack and paving the way for a better future for the Wallabies.
‘He’s been a massive part of making our scrum a lot more stable and even formidable at times, where we can even impose ourselves.,’ he said.
‘He’s got the real confidence of not just the front row, he’s very much imbued in the whole eight, insofar as delivering at scrum time.
‘He’s a great bloke as well. I don’t know if you’ve ever had the chance to talk scrums with Mike Cron. You won’t understand any of it, but his enthusiasm will blow you away.
‘He’s an absolute champion.’
