“I’ve probably got one job to do and I want to do a job that makes a difference,” Eddie Jones told Gold Digger a few weeks ago
Boy, what a job he has.
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Jones steps into the role he held almost two decades ago in a wild series of events, just months after he engineered an 2-1 England series victory in Australia.
The 62-year-old had always said ‘I didn’t divorce Australia. Australia divorced me’ Well the counselling has succeeded and the two are back trying to make it work again.
Jones returns home on a long-term deal that will see him involved with the Wallabies and Wallaroos until 2027.
The Wallabies were only just in camp under Dave Rennie days earlier before the announcement, lining up a dream World Cup thanks to a picture-perfect draw.
Now it sets up as the Eddie Jones revenge tour, with the quarter-finals littered with ghosts of Jones’ past.
There’s England, the team that only sacked Jones just weeks earlier as they prepare for their own bold venture under Steve Borthwick.
Journalist Josh Gardner pondered: "Is Eddie Jones petty enough to intentionally finish second in his RWC pool so he can have a crack at putting England out in the quarters?”
He may not that petty but he never forgets.
Then there’s Japan, who were revolutionised under Jones’ tenure, headlined by 2015’s ‘Brighton Miracle’ when they upset South Africa at the World Cup.
Finally, there’s Argentina, which would set up the latest chapter of Jones v Cheika.
There are similarities between the two coaches and their appointment to the Wallabies job.
Cheika was appointed head coach in 2014, less than a year before the 2015 Rugby World Cup. He managed to turn around the squad and get them to the Final for the first time since Jones had been in charge.
The Wallabies will be hoping for a similar bump in form, which Jones has been renowned for. Think 2001 and the Tri-Nations.
Jones departed Australia in 2007 and went straight to South Africa and helped them to the title as a technical advisor.
The rise of Japan has been documented and this continued when he joined England, winning a world-record 17 straight.
Jones will have less time than Cheika to help turn around the Wallabies in a shortened Rugby Championship.
He’s expected to open his tenure with an away Test against South Africa before two matches on home soil against Argentina and New Zealand, followed by the second Bledisloe Test, likely in Dunedin.
A warm-up against France in Paris is on the cards, leaving just five Tests for Jones to make his mark on the team.
Sorting out an attacking coach remains one of the priorities following the departure of Scott Wisemantel earlier in the month.
The policy surrounding the Wallabies’ overseas players will be another challenge Jones has to deal with.
He has some dealings with the policy during his time as Suntory advisor, the home of Samu Kerevi, who he initially helped get back to Australian Rugby via the Sevens program.
It currently sits at three but suggestions this may expand have failed to die down ever since it was introduced.
The decision to appoint Eddie Jones is one of the most important in recent memories given the current period.
The deal will see Jones oversee three World Cups, including the Women’s in 2025, to go with a Lions Tour as Australia enters a ‘Golden Decade’.
Tim Horan’s assessment that Jones needs a Bledisloe Cup (within 2 years) and RWC Semi/Lions win to justify the decision seems apt.
Regardless of what happened, all eyes will be on the Wallabies heading into what could be the most important year in recent history.
