Ireland the benchmark as Felix Jones builds England's blitz 

Felix Jones, the former Munster and Ireland full-back, coaches England's defence against his homeland today.

BENCHMARK: England defence coach Felix Jones believes Ireland are the benchmark as he builds England. Pic: Harry Murphy/Sportsfile

It’s nothing new, certainly not in Test rugby, for a coach to be plotting the downfall of the country of their birth. It is a topic that continues to fascinate, even if it appears tiresome to the people at the heart of the issue and the questions have been asked more than once, in both the Irish and English camps, ahead of this evening’s Guinness Six Nations clash in south-west London.

“I get asked this every time I go back and I’ve been back quite a bit now,” Ireland’s head coach Andy Farrell said on Thursday as he was asked to review once more his English birth and Irish allegiances, before steering his answer back to something more relevant to him and his objectives.