Wednesday 7 March 2018 09:53, UK
Eddie Jones has warned his England players "no one is indispensable" as he considers his options ahead of Saturday's game with France.
England's hopes of securing a second Grand Slam in three years were ended by the 25-13 defeat to Scotland at Murrayfield but victory at the Stade de France would keep them in the hunt for the Six Nations title.
Rain has been forecast for Paris on the day of the game and Jones may look to pick a side capable of winning ugly in challenging conditions, which may involve George Ford or Owen Farrell being omitted from the starting XV.
"I am not wedded to anything. No one is indispensable," Jones said.
"There's an old story about this old coach who had a bucket of water in his office and he would say 'come here son, put your hand in this bucket'.
"You put your hand in and take it out and he says 'what's happened?' Your hand creates a hole and as soon as your hand comes out, the hole is filled in.
"No one is indispensable. It's the same for me - I'm not indispensable. The players understand that.
"They have got to play and perform so who is at 10 and 12 will be done on who we feel is the best for that game. Possibly the weather conditions could dictate a horses-for-courses selection.
"There is very heavy rain forecast for Friday and Saturday and the Stade de France is a heavy pitch anyway.
"With heavy rain, it will be even heavier, so it will be a 'slogathon'. We could pick a team to play a 'slogathon'."
No one is indispensable. It's the same for me - I'm not indispensable. The players understand that.
Despite the disappointment of defeat to Scotland, Jones is convinced it is just a blip rather than the start of a downward turn.
"You don't win 24 out of 26 games by doing a lot of things wrong," he added.
"We do a lot of things right but we just went off course a little bit. We need to just put the ship back on course."
