Danny Cipriani has hit back at England head coach Eddie Jones following his criticism of the nation's public schools set-up.
Jones—whose contract will expire following the 2023 Rugby World Cup —recently told iNews English rugby relied too heavily on the public school system. He went on to suggest the current model creates 'closeted' players who struggle to find ways to win "when we are not on the front foot."
Cipriani attended fee-paying schools but came from humble surroundings, rewarded with scholarships after he showed great promise in rugby, football and cricket. And the 34-year-old—currently a free agent following his release from Bath —believes Jones deserves more of the blame than he lets on.
"But the reason Eddie is not getting the type of players he says he wants is because of the environment he creates with England and not the schooling system," Cipriani wrote for the Daily Mail. "That is an easy target.
"I'd like to think I come from a middle ground and a neutral perspective on this topic. I grew up on a council estate but was fortunate to be able to attend private schools on scholarships because of my ability in rugby and other sports."
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) was quick to rebuke Jones for his comments, which came not long after England sealed a summer series win in Australia. Former England coach and World Cup-winner Clive Woodward also slammed the incumbent for the timing and sentiment of his criticism, with a little more than a year to go before his England send-off in France.
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It's Cipriani's belief Jones' demanding ways are in fact one of the major factors as to why England have perhaps failed to thrive in high-pressure situations of late. The players "struggle to react when things do not go to plan," and that's due to Jones' inflexible methods.
The Red Rose finished as runners-up to South Africa in the 2019 World Cup final. England were the favourites to triumph after beating New Zealand en route to the decider in Japan, but they fell way short at the last hurdle.
Jones' side have also failed to perform during the last two Six Nations tournaments, winning just two of their five fixtures in both 2021 and 2022 editions. Many players have blossomed under Jones and speak highly of his abilities as a coach, but Cipriani wrote the Australian "does not like to be questioned."
"Don't get me wrong, the private system is not perfect," added the fly-half, who won the last of his 16 England caps under Jones in 2018. "It misses a lot of potential talent.
"Historically, there has been a systemic class issue within English rugby because of who the majority of the participants are. The RFU do need to do more to make the game more inclusive for everyone. They needs to try to attract people from every class of society and increase participation."
There may be some truth to Jones' assessment in that England is not capitalising on enough of its player pool. It all begins at the top, however, and if blame is being assigned, Cipriani suggested "let's start with an England coach who takes responsibility."
