Jones pleased with 'good hit out'
Sat, 16 Aug 2008 12:25
Director of Rugby Eddie Jones stressed there was still plenty of areas to work on, but was pleased with the effort of his players in their 19-10 win over Western Force at Old Albanians on Friday.
Saracens started and finished the game strongly with tries from Michael Owen, Rodd Penney and Adam Powell securing the win, but it was the defensive effort against the Super 14 side which pleased Jones just as much.
"You are never satisfied and we are nowhere near we need to be but it was a good hit out," explained the former Wallaby coach, Jones, who also helped the Springboks win the World Cup last year.
"They are a tough and competitive side who are very strong in the tackle contest and in David Pocock you saw a player who is probably one of the best in the world at it, but we have learned a lot.
"We showed some nice patches of attack at the start and end of the game but the middle bit wasn't too flashy. But I really liked the way we worked hard in defence.
"That is an area that we have been putting a lot of time and effort into over pre-season. We were disappointed with conceding four tries in Bayonne last week, but we worked much harder tonight and it was a good team effort.
"You saw that in the closing minutes when they made a line break and you had guys like Kris Chesney and Cencus Johnston who were flat out on their feet but they absolutely busted a gut to get back in the line."
The try of the match was scored by Powell but it came after a flowing move that went from one end of the pitch to the other.
"We were really sharp in the first part of the game, but we dropped off a bit as we struggled to get good ball," added Jones.
"But you'd be happy with a try like that in any form of football. We showed some of the skills we have in the squad and if we can work a bit harder on getting our formations and order right in that area, it will take care of itself. That's what the next few warm-up games are for but there will also be a big focus on getting our set piece and defence right."
In injury news from the game, Andy Farrell was taken off shortly after taking the field as a second half replacement with a dislocated thumb. He will be assessed by the medical staff over the weekend.
With thanks to Saracens Rugby
