Operation Dead Meat: Ruthless Eddie Jones wields the knife again for England

There has been much talk in Downing Street circles this week of “Operation Red Meat”, which apparently involves lobbing juicy policy initiatives at Tory backbenchers to distract them from recent events. With Eddie Jones it is slightly different: “Operation Dead Meat” seems to be the subtext of most of his England squad announcements these days.

The selection door, we are constantly informed, is never closed. Admittedly, Jamie George was recalled from squad oblivion in November and Jack Nowell has resurfaced after three years of injury-hit Six Nations exile. But try telling George Ford, Billy and Mako Vunipola – and even Elliot Daly – that a fulfilling England future still awaits them. Or advising Adam Radwan, Alex Mitchell and Louis Lynagh that their omission from the latest 36-man Six Nations training squad is a hidden blessing for their 2023 World Cup prospects. Jones’s blade, when it materialises, tends to be razor sharp.

Good luck, then, to the next consignment of newly arrived lambs because what percentage of Jones’s latest flock will survive the next cull? We are now nudging 180 players in various England squads since he took over and remembering who is on the old conveyor belt tonight – a la the Generation Game – grows ever harder. It also means few inside the team room can guarantee there will be no bullet with their name on next time.

Is this ceaseless uncertainty healthy? From the perspective of Jones, the answer seems to be yes. Test rugby is all about leaving your comfort zone. England, by sheer dint of playing numbers, are relatively spoilt for choice. But as Jones endlessly tinkers, sifts and rotates, there is also a risk that his obvious obsession with winning the 2023 World Cup is clouding England’s