England captain Owen Farrell awarded his team-mates their Six Nations medals at a private, COVID-secure ceremony on Sunday; Eddie Jones already looking ahead to Autumn Nations Cup campaign, which kicks off with a game against Georgia at Twickenham on November 14
Sunday 1 November 2020 22:09, UK
England head coach Eddie Jones says they must be "gracious of the opportunity" to carry on playing international rugby as the latest lockdown measures limit movement for most people.
Coronavirus protocols meant England captain Owen Farrell presented his England team-mates with their winners medals on Sunday morning as celebrations continued after they sealed their third Six Nations title in five years under the Australian with victory over Italy.
Jones is already looking ahead to England's next challenge, however, with their Autumn Nations Cup campaign kicking off with a game against Georgia at Twickenham on November 14, with matches against Ireland and Wales to follow on the next two Saturdays.
As well as the challenges they will face on the pitch, Jones also acknowledged they must retain their focus off it by adhering to COVID-19 rules within their bubble, especially given the circumstances surrounding their cancelled match against the Barbarians last weekend.
Jones said: "All of our players and staff are aware of their responsibilities. Next week we are giving the guys a bit of a break and then we come in for the Georgia preparation.
"We've got to be cognitive of the fact that everyone's looking at what we're doing.
"We've got to be so gracious of the opportunity we've got. We're so lucky to be able to play international rugby when countries are in lockdown around Europe.
"We understand that responsibility and we want to make sure again that we try to put smiles on people's faces.
"We've just had the trophy presentation, there were 40 or 50 people there, they had big smiles on their faces and hopefully we can do a bit more of that."
As for the Six Nations trophy and medals presentation, limited to those inside the England bubble, Jones added: "It was fantastic. Obviously it's not the same, everything is a bit different now.
"The players walked to the stage, there were fireworks. Owen [Farrell] got to be [World Rugby chairman] Bill Beaumont and put the medals around the players' necks!
"All the paper goes off and the fireworks go off. The players enjoy that solitary moment and then we're back to business."
Jones also admitted he was proud of his players' positive attitude during the protracted 2020 Six Nations campaign, with the tournament victory helping them to move on after the collective disappointment of losing last year's World Cup final in Japan to South Africa.
"I really liked the way the team conducted themselves during this tournament particularly," he said.
"I prepared the team poorly for the French game, which was widely documented. Their approach to the rest of the tournament has been outstanding.
"They've got on with the job, not looked for any excuse, regardless of what's happened, and played good, tough rugby, which you have to do to win the Six Nations."
