The Barbarians have announced that former England head coach Eddie Jones will take charge of their team for their clash against a World XV at Twickenham on May 28.
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The sides will be competing for the Killik Cup, and Jones will face an old adversary in former All Blacks boss Steve Hansen, who will be the World XV’s head coach.
Second stint as Barbarians coach
It will be the second time that Jones is coaching the Baa-baas. In his previous stint, his side suffered a narrow 33-31 loss against Fiji in an exciting Killik Cup encounter at Twickenham in November 2019.
Jones has coached several of the world’s leading players during a distinguished 28-year career, which has seen him take the Wallabies and England to the Rugby World Cup final in 2003 and 2019, respectively.
The 62-year-old also helped the Springboks to lift the Webb Ellis Cup as part of the Springboks’ backroom staff in France in 2007, and he guided England to three Six Nations titles (including a 2016 Grand Slam).
“It’s an incredible honour to be asked to coach the Barbarians for a second time,” Jones told the Barbarians’ official website.
“The club showed during the autumn that the values and traditions which make the Barbarians so special are still very much alive. Fans can expect to see two top-quality teams, packed full of international players, going all out to catch the eye ahead of the Rugby World Cup.
“I am very much looking forward to returning to Twickenham Stadium – a venue I have so many fond memories of – as head coach of the Barbarians, and I’m more motivated than ever to put on a show.
“Going up against Steve rekindles a great rivalry which first started in our days competing in Super Rugby and progressed into the international arena. It’ll be a great challenge and one I’m sure we’re both relishing.”
The clash with the World XV marks the Baa-baas’ first return to Twickenham since a memorable 52-21 triumph over England in June.
It follows a busy autumn campaign which saw Barbarians sides coached by Scott Robertson, Ronan O’Gara, John Mulvihill, and Geordan Murphy play four matches in November.
After retaining the Killik Cup courtesy of a 35-31 win over an All Blacks XV in front of 35,000 people at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, a last-gasp triumph for the famous touring side over Bath Rugby was sandwiched by two losses to Northampton Saints and Harlequins – with the club springing to the aid of Premiership clubs looking to fill gaps in their schedules following the cancellation of all league fixtures involving Wasps and Worcester Warriors.
Meanwhile, this will be the first time a World XV takes to the field in five years, and Hansen – who coached the All Blacks during their triumphant Rugby World Cup campaign in England in 2015 – is relishing the prospect.
Excited to return to Twickenham
“2023 is set to be an incredible year for rugby, and I’m really excited to be returning to Twickenham,” he said.
“I’ve coached both for and against the Barbarians during my career, and while you always have to expect the unexpected where they are concerned, you can be certain that come Sunday, 28 May, we’ll have a hugely entertaining match played in a festival atmosphere.
“The Rugby World Cup will be firmly on the horizon when this match comes around, and we hope we can showcase many of the players who will go on to be stars of the tournament in France during this Killik Cup clash.”