England or nothing for White
Former South Africa coach Jake White has reiterated his desire to coach England, and only England.
Former South Africa coach Jake White has reiterated his desire to coach England, and only England.
The World Cup winning coach has says that he has no interest in becoming Eddie O'Sullivan's replacement at the helm of Ireland.
“I've made no secret of the fact that the [England] job has always appealed to me,” White told The Guardian on Friday.
“But England have their own review process under way and must decide what's right for them.”
England's director of elite rugby, Rob Andrew, is conducting a review of the Six Nations campaign and is due to announce his recommendations on Wednesday.
Andrew is expected to recommend Ashton remains as head coach but much has been made of the potential appointment of Martin Johnson as team manager.
Given Johnson's outspoken criticism of Ashton in the past, such an appointment could create tension within the England camp, and would clearly undermine Ashton's role as a leader.
White's Springbok side scored four consecutive wins against Ashton's England in recent times, including twice at the last year's World Cup.
Despite England's below par performances of late, White believes they are capable of winning the World Cup in 2011, with the right leadership.
“I've said on many occasions that England is a great rugby nation with the style of players that suits the way I coach,” explained White.
“The country has been to three World Cup finals and has an amazing depth of talent and coaching them would be an opportunity anyone would welcome.
“England are probably in a similar position to where South Africa were in 2004 when I took over – they have the players and the structures but they just need a little bit of something to be added.”
White currently holds a position as a marketing executive with a Johannesburg financial services company and has been in discussions with the IRB to work as a consultant mentoring Tier Three rugby nations.
Like previous World Cup winning coach and friend Sir Clive Woodward, White built his famous side around experienced players and remained loyal to a core group in his squad.
White's preference for big strong players is no secret and he believes that the player depth in English rugby would enable him to produce a team to match the size and dynamism of any other in world rugby.
“England has a fantastic player base and a rich rugby culture, and whoever does that job has a fantastic opportunity every time a World Cup comes round,” he said.
Ashton's predecessor, Andy Robinson, has blamed Ashton's headaches in the last year or two on Twickenham's politics and the culture within the RFU.
“There are so many hidden agendas from the team and management that sometimes you don't know what to believe,” Robinson said.