Ex-England duo call on Shaun Edwards to take international job after ‘born-winner’ commits to rivals

Mike Tindall and James Haskell have called on Shaun Edwards to enter the England fold after his recent exit from the French national side.

Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Rugby podcast, the duo pondered Edwards’ next move after six years with France.

The 59-year-old has openly admitted in the past that he would like to coach England, but with Steve Borthwick seemingly backed by the RFU, it remains to be seen whether there would be a place for the former rugby league star within the set-up.

“I have a very, very small intuition that Shaun Edwards might end up with England,” suggested Haskell, dismissing the vacancy issue.

“If you had someone like that in the mix, who had a track record of, in short time periods, getting the best out of a team emotionally, defensively, his strategies work in a very, very quick period of time.

“Shaun is extremely smart. He emotionally understands how to connect, and he specialises in creating a fun, aggressive environment; also he’s very good at mobilising the mob.

“You saw what he did with France, where defence was optional, to them being a force – he could certainly create those winning environments very quickly.”

The French coaching staff were reportedly informed of Edwards’ exit during a meeting last month, after concerns of a lack of focus, concentration and commitment were raised internally.

A source close to French publication L’Equipe said: “The last Six Nations Championship was simply a revelation or confirmation that Edwards was no longer fulfilling his role. It couldn’t continue like that until the 2027 World Cup.”

A fresh start may be needed, but where exactly that will be remains to be seen.

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Andy Farrell

No fresh starts needed in Ireland. Andy Farrell has committed to the country until the 2031 World Cup, which is huge news for a nation desperate to break their quarter-final curse.

Another of England’s lost sons, this former rugby league star has achieved great success with his adopted nation and clearly sees potential within the growing squad.

“He’s a born winner; he wants to win,” continued Haskell.

“There’s some of that youth coming through, so maybe he feels like there’s a real opportunity in 2031 to go to the World Cup and do something.”

Ireland famously crashed out of the 2023 World Cup in the quarter-final for a record eight time. But that’s not the statistic that Farrell wants to end on.

“I think that’s a massive sign of intent that he must see an opportunity there, because he would have been in high demand,” Haskell said.

“He’s done a great turnaround with Ireland from where they were when he first started to World Cup contenders, to a dip, to back to where they want to be, or near enough where they want to be.”

Ireland will now have at least two more World Cup campaigns under the British and Irish Lions head coach.

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